Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Jamaica

Jamaica: Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes was 23.6% in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
23.6%
Change on year
down 3.8%
World rank
58th
of 147 countries
All-time high
30.0%
in 2003
All-time low
22.0%
in 2017
Years of data
14
1999–2019

Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Jamaica, 1999–2019

01020301999200920191999: 24.5 %2000: 29.4 %2001: 29.6 %2002: 28.1 %2003: 30 %2004: 27.6 %2005: 28 %2013: 23 %2014: 25.7 %2015: 28 %2016: 23.9 %2017: 22 %2018: 24.5 %2019: 23.6 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Jamaica is 23.6%, measured in 2019.

That represents a change of down 3.8% on the previous year and down 15.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Jamaica peaked at 30.0% in 2003 and was at its lowest, 22.0%, in 2017.

That places Jamaica 58th out of 147 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.

Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Jamaica, year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes (%) in Jamaica, 1999 to 2019.
Year % Change
1999 24.5%
2000 29.4% +20.3%
2001 29.6% +0.5%
2002 28.1% -5.0%
2003 30.0% +6.7%
2004 27.6% -7.7%
2005 28.0% +1.4%
2013 23.0% -18.1%
2014 25.7% +11.8%
2015 28.0% +9.3%
2016 23.9% -14.9%
2017 22.0% -8.0%
2018 24.5% +11.6%
2019 23.6% -3.8%

Jamaica compared with similar countries

  • Jamaica's 23.6% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 20.9%, 1.1× the median. (43 countries reporting)
  • Jamaica's 23.6% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 21.1%, 1.1× the median. (36 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 24.5% 24.5% 24.5% 1
2000s 28.8% 27.6% 30.0% 6
2010s 24.4% 22.0% 28.0% 7

Countries ranked near Jamaica

  1. 55 Palestine, State of 25.4% compare
  2. 56 Cayman Islands 24.7% compare
  3. 57 Timor-Leste 24.2% compare
  4. 59 Egypt 23.4% compare
  5. 60 Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of 23.4% compare
  6. 61 Indonesia 22.5% compare

See the full ranking of 192 places →

More reference data data for Jamaica

All data for Jamaica →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Jamaica?
Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Jamaica was 23.6% in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes recorded in Jamaica?
The highest recorded value was 30.0% in 2003.
What is the lowest out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes recorded in Jamaica?
The lowest recorded value was 22.0% in 2017.
How does Jamaica rank for out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes?
Jamaica ranks 58th out of 147 countries with data for 2019.
Is out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes rising or falling in Jamaica?
Over the last ten years it is down 15.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Jamaica data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Jamaica. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 14 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-rate-for-youth-of-upper-secondary-school-age-both-sexes-percent/jamaica/

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About this data

Indicator
Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
192 places, 3,194 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Number of youth of official upper secondary school age who are not enrolled in upper secondary school expressed as a percentage of the population of official upper secondary school age.