Population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Zambia

Zambia: Population of compulsory school age, both sexes was 3.49 million number in 2019. ▲ Rising

Latest (2019)
3.49 million number
Change on year
up 2.3%
World rank
58th
of 186 countries
All-time high
3.49 million number
in 2019
All-time low
1.92 million number
in 1998
Years of data
22
1998–2019

Population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Zambia, 1998–2019

01.0M2.0M3.0M1998200820191998: 1.9M number1999: 2.0M number2000: 2.0M number2001: 2.1M number2002: 2.1M number2003: 2.2M number2004: 2.2M number2005: 2.3M number2006: 2.4M number2007: 2.4M number2008: 2.5M number2009: 2.6M number2010: 2.7M number2011: 2.8M number2012: 2.9M number2013: 3.0M number2014: 3.1M number2015: 3.2M number2016: 3.2M number2017: 3.3M number2018: 3.4M number2019: 3.5M number

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.

Analysis

Zambia recorded 3.49 million number for population of compulsory school age, both sexes in 2019. That is the highest value across all 22 years on record.

That represents a change of up 2.3% on the previous year and up 33.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Zambia peaked at 3.49 million number in 2019 and was at its lowest, 1.92 million number, in 1998.

Zambia ranks 58th of 186 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 1.95 million number 1.92 million number 1.97 million number 2
2000s 2.28 million number 2.01 million number 2.61 million number 10
2010s 3.11 million number 2.71 million number 3.49 million number 10

Countries ranked near Zambia

  1. 55 Canada 3.91 million number compare
  2. 56 Poland 3.85 million number compare
  3. 57 Sri Lanka 3.77 million number compare
  4. 59 Madagascar 3.47 million number compare
  5. 60 Bolivia, Plurinational State of 3.26 million number compare
  6. 61 Australia 3.18 million number compare

See the full ranking of 231 places →

More reference data data for Zambia

All data for Zambia →

Frequently asked questions

What is population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Zambia?
Population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Zambia was 3.49 million number in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest population of compulsory school age, both sexes recorded in Zambia?
The highest recorded value was 3.49 million number in 2019.
What is the lowest population of compulsory school age, both sexes recorded in Zambia?
The lowest recorded value was 1.92 million number in 1998.
How does Zambia rank for population of compulsory school age, both sexes?
Zambia ranks 58th out of 186 countries with data for 2019.
Is population of compulsory school age, both sexes rising or falling in Zambia?
Over the last ten years it is up 33.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Zambia data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Population of compulsory school age, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Zambia. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 21 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/population-of-compulsory-school-age-both-sexes-number/zambia/

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About this data

Indicator
Population of compulsory school age, both sexes (number)
Unit
number
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
231 places, 4,849 data points, 1975–2020
Last refreshed

Population of children within the age span that children are legally obliged to attend school.