Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Ghana
Ghana: Share of children who are not in pre-primary school was 1.0% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Ghana, 2007–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Ghana stood at 1.0%. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is down 92.6% on the previous year and down 77.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Ghana peaked at 36.7% in 2007 and was at its lowest, 1.0%, in 2024.
That places Ghana 161st out of 179 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Ghana, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 36.7% | — |
| 2008 | 29.2% | -20.5% |
| 2009 | 28.2% | -3.3% |
| 2011 | 25.7% | -8.7% |
| 2012 | 20.8% | -19.4% |
| 2013 | 17.8% | -14.2% |
| 2014 | 4.2% | -76.2% |
| 2015 | 6.3% | +49.4% |
| 2016 | 32.0% | +406.4% |
| 2017 | 22.5% | -29.8% |
| 2018 | 14.4% | -35.9% |
| 2019 | 18.1% | +25.3% |
| 2020 | 10.9% | -39.6% |
| 2021 | 12.9% | +18.6% |
| 2024 | 1.0% | -92.6% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 1.0% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 34.1%, 3% of the median. (37 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 1.0% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 43.8%, 2% of the median. (34 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Ghana 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.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | +406.4% | 6.3% | 32.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 31.3% | 28.2% | 36.7% | 3 |
| 2010s | 18.0% | 4.2% | 32.0% | 9 |
| 2020s | 8.3% | 1.0% | 12.9% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
More education data for Ghana
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 174,414 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 39,902 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 949,095 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 913,117 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.33 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.98 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.6567 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1448 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Ghana?
- Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Ghana was 1.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children who are not in pre-primary school recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 36.7% in 2007.
- What is the lowest share of children who are not in pre-primary school recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.0% in 2024.
- How does Ghana rank for share of children who are not in pre-primary school?
- Ghana ranks 161st out of 179 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children who are not in pre-primary school rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is down 77.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children who are not in pre-primary school. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Children one year before the official primary entry age (typically age 5) not enrolled in pre-primary education, expressed as a percentage of all children in that age group.