Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa: Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes was 38.93 million number in 2019. ▲ Rising

Latest (2019)
38.93 million number
Change on year
up 0.7%
Rank
11th
of 45 groups
All-time high
38.93 million number
in 2019
All-time low
27.99 million number
in 1998
Years of data
22
1998–2019

Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1998–2019

010.0M20.0M30.0M40.0M1998200820191998: 28.0M number1999: 28.4M number2000: 29.2M number2001: 29.5M number2002: 29.7M number2003: 30.2M number2004: 30.4M number2005: 30.8M number2006: 31.2M number2007: 31.9M number2008: 31.3M number2009: 31.4M number2010: 31.5M number2011: 32.4M number2012: 33.3M number2013: 33.4M number2014: 33.9M number2015: 34.8M number2016: 35.8M number2017: 36.8M number2018: 38.6M number2019: 38.9M number

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.

Analysis

Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 38.93 million number for out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in 2019. That is the highest value across all 22 years on record.

The figure is up 0.7% on the previous year and up 24.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 38.93 million number in 2019 and was at its lowest, 27.99 million number, in 1998.

Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 11th of 45 groups on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.

Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year

Annual values for Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes (number) in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1998 to 2019.
Year number Change
1998 27.99 million number
1999 28.44 million number +1.6%
2000 29.18 million number +2.6%
2001 29.54 million number +1.2%
2002 29.74 million number +0.7%
2003 30.20 million number +1.6%
2004 30.39 million number +0.6%
2005 30.80 million number +1.4%
2006 31.23 million number +1.4%
2007 31.86 million number +2.0%
2008 31.27 million number -1.8%
2009 31.38 million number +0.3%
2010 31.52 million number +0.4%
2011 32.42 million number +2.9%
2012 33.26 million number +2.6%
2013 33.39 million number +0.4%
2014 33.87 million number +1.4%
2015 34.80 million number +2.7%
2016 35.82 million number +2.9%
2017 36.76 million number +2.6%
2018 38.65 million number +5.1%
2019 38.93 million number +0.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 28.21 million number 27.99 million number 28.44 million number 2
2000s 30.56 million number 29.18 million number 31.86 million number 10
2010s 34.94 million number 31.52 million number 38.93 million number 10

Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa

  1. 8 Egypt 1.21 million number compare
  2. 9 Kenya 1.12 million number compare
  3. 10 Niger 1.09 million number compare
  4. 11 Yemen 1.02 million number compare
  5. 12 Côte d'Ivoire 973,911 number compare
  6. 13 Türkiye 920,969 number compare
  7. 14 Iraq 896,863 number compare

See the full ranking of 192 places →

More reference data data for Sub-Saharan Africa

All data for Sub-Saharan Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Sub-Saharan Africa?
Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Sub-Saharan Africa was 38.93 million number in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
The highest recorded value was 38.93 million number in 2019.
What is the lowest out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 27.99 million number in 1998.
How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes?
Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 11th out of 45 groups with data for 2019.
Is out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 24.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Sub-Saharan Africa. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 13 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/out-of-school-youth-of-upper-secondary-school-age-both-sexes-number/sub-saharan-africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes (number)
Unit
number
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
192 places, 3,225 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Total number of upper secondary school age youth who are not enrolled in upper secondary education.