Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Jamaica

Jamaica: Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower was 17.7% in 2019. ▲ Rising

Latest (2019)
17.7%
Change on year
up 4.2%
World rank
16th
of 148 countries
All-time high
17.7%
in 2019
All-time low
4.9%
in 1983
Years of data
18
1976–2019

Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Jamaica, 1976–2019

51015201976199720191976: 11.4 %1977: 7.2 %1981: 5.5 %1983: 4.9 %1984: 5.5 %1985: 5.1 %1986: 6.3 %1999: 8.3 %2000: 8.9 %2001: 9.1 %2002: 9.8 %2003: 10.7 %2004: 7.1 %2015: 17.6 %2016: 16.9 %2017: 16.9 %2018: 17 %2019: 17.7 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Jamaica is 17.7%, measured in 2019. That is the highest value across all 18 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.2% on the previous year and up 148.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Jamaica peaked at 17.7% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 4.9%, in 1983.

That places Jamaica 16th out of 148 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 18 years of available data.

Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Jamaica, year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, male (%) in Jamaica, 1976 to 2019.
Year % Change
1976 11.4%
1977 7.2% -36.5%
1981 5.5% -24.3%
1983 4.9% -11.3%
1984 5.5% +13.2%
1985 5.1% -7.7%
1986 6.3% +24.6%
1999 8.3% +31.0%
2000 8.9% +7.4%
2001 9.1% +1.7%
2002 9.8% +8.3%
2003 10.7% +8.7%
2004 7.1% -33.1%
2015 17.6% +146.6%
2016 16.9% -4.1%
2017 16.9% +0.1%
2018 17.0% +0.4%
2019 17.7% +4.2%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 9.3% 7.2% 11.4% 2
1980s 5.5% 4.9% 6.3% 5
1990s 8.3% 8.3% 8.3% 1
2000s 9.1% 7.1% 10.7% 5
2010s 17.2% 16.9% 17.7% 5

Countries ranked near Jamaica

  1. 13 Puerto Rico 23.1% compare
  2. 14 Jordan 22.4% compare
  3. 15 Honduras 22.3% compare
  4. 17 Guatemala 17.4% compare
  5. 18 Burundi 17.0% compare
  6. 19 Côte d'Ivoire 16.3% compare

See the full ranking of 191 places →

More reference data data for Jamaica

All data for Jamaica →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Jamaica?
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Jamaica was 17.7% in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower recorded in Jamaica?
The highest recorded value was 17.7% in 2019.
What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower recorded in Jamaica?
The lowest recorded value was 4.9% in 1983.
How does Jamaica rank for out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower?
Jamaica ranks 16th out of 148 countries with data for 2019.
Is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower rising or falling in Jamaica?
Over the last ten years it is up 148.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Jamaica data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Jamaica. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 12 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-rate-for-children-and-adolescents-of-primary-and-lower-secondary-school-age-4/jamaica/

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About this data

Indicator
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, male (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
191 places, 4,329 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Proportion of children and adolescents in the official age range for primary and lower secondary education who are not enrolled in primary or lower secondary education. To calculate the indicator, the number of students of the official age for primary and lower secondary education enrolled in primary or lower secondary education is subtracted from the total population of primary and lower secondary education. The result is expressed as a percentage of the population of the official age for primary and lower secondary education. For more information, consult the UNESCO Institute of Statistics website: http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/