Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)

Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income): Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower was 2.8% in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
2.8%
Change on year
down 0.0%
Rank
36th
of 43 groups
All-time high
9.3%
in 1981
All-time low
2.8%
in 2019
Years of data
50
1970–2019

Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), 1970–2019

246810197019942019

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 Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) is 2.8%, measured in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 50 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 36.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) peaked at 9.3% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 2.8%, in 2019.

That places Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) 36th out of 43 groups with data for 2019, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 50 years of available data.

Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, both sexes (%) in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), 1970 to 2019.
Year % Change
1970 8.0%
1971 8.1% +0.5%
1972 8.7% +7.3%
1973 8.9% +3.3%
1974 9.3% +4.2%
1975 9.2% -0.9%
1976 9.0% -2.0%
1977 8.9% -1.6%
1978 8.9% -0.5%
1979 8.7% -1.9%
1980 8.8% +1.5%
1981 9.3% +5.6%
1982 9.2% -1.2%
1983 9.1% -0.6%
1984 8.3% -9.2%
1985 8.1% -2.2%
1986 8.1% -0.0%
1987 7.8% -4.0%
1988 7.3% -6.7%
1989 7.5% +3.3%
1990 7.4% -1.6%
1991 6.7% -8.8%
1992 6.7% -0.1%
1993 7.1% +5.7%
1994 7.6% +6.6%
1995 8.1% +6.6%
1996 8.1% -0.3%
1997 8.2% +1.8%
1998 7.6% -7.4%
1999 6.9% -8.6%
2000 6.7% -3.1%
2001 5.4% -20.5%
2002 4.4% -18.6%
2003 3.0% -30.8%
2004 3.3% +9.5%
2005 4.7% +42.0%
2006 4.9% +4.7%
2007 4.9% -1.1%
2008 4.3% -11.4%
2009 4.5% +4.0%
2010 4.2% -6.6%
2011 4.2% +0.4%
2012 4.0% -4.2%
2013 3.8% -5.3%
2014 3.9% +1.4%
2015 3.7% -4.4%
2016 3.7% +0.7%
2017 3.2% -12.9%
2018 2.9% -11.9%
2019 2.8% -0.0%

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
2005 +42.0% 3.3% 4.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 8.8% 8.0% 9.3% 10
1980s 8.4% 7.3% 9.3% 10
1990s 7.4% 6.7% 8.2% 10
2000s 4.6% 3.0% 6.7% 10
2010s 3.6% 2.8% 4.2% 10

Countries ranked near Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)

  1. 33 British Virgin Islands 12.1% compare
  2. 34 Eswatini 12.0% compare
  3. 35 South Africa 11.7% compare
  4. 36 Venezuela 11.1% compare
  5. 37 Romania 11.0% compare
  6. 38 Sao Tome and Principe 10.8% compare
  7. 39 Myanmar 10.7% compare

See the full ranking of 192 places →

More reference data data for Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)

All data for Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) was 2.8% 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 Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
The highest recorded value was 9.3% in 1981.
What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower recorded in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
The lowest recorded value was 2.8% in 2019.
How does Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) rank for out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower?
Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) ranks 36th out of 43 groups with data for 2019.
Is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower rising or falling in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
Over the last ten years it is down 36.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) 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, both sexes (%). 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 Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income). Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 17 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-rate-for-children-and-adolescents-of-primary-and-lower-secondary-school-age/europe-and-central-asia-excluding-high-income/

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About this data

Indicator
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, both sexes (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
192 places, 4,615 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/