Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Panama
Panama: Share of children who are not in pre-primary school was 23.3% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Panama, 1999–2024
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 Panama stood at 23.3%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 13.0% on the previous year and up 16.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Panama peaked at 43.3% in 1999 and was at its lowest, 15.1%, in 2022.
That places Panama 65th out of 179 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 22 years of available data.
Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Panama, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 43.3% | — |
| 2000 | 32.6% | -24.6% |
| 2001 | 25.9% | -20.5% |
| 2002 | 22.7% | -12.5% |
| 2004 | 26.8% | +18.0% |
| 2005 | 20.4% | -23.7% |
| 2006 | 15.7% | -23.4% |
| 2007 | 17.0% | +8.8% |
| 2008 | 19.6% | +14.8% |
| 2009 | 27.5% | +40.4% |
| 2010 | 24.0% | -12.6% |
| 2011 | 23.3% | -3.2% |
| 2012 | 19.4% | -16.5% |
| 2013 | 18.5% | -4.4% |
| 2014 | 19.9% | +7.5% |
| 2015 | 20.6% | +3.1% |
| 2016 | 26.4% | +28.4% |
| 2017 | 24.6% | -6.9% |
| 2021 | 19.4% | -21.1% |
| 2022 | 15.1% | -21.9% |
| 2023 | 26.8% | +76.9% |
| 2024 | 23.3% | -13.0% |
Panama compared with similar countries
- Panama's 23.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 4.8%, 4.9× the median. (70 countries reporting)
- Panama's 23.3% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 6.5%, 3.6× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 43.3% | 43.3% | 43.3% | 1 |
| 2000s | 23.1% | 15.7% | 32.6% | 9 |
| 2010s | 22.1% | 18.5% | 26.4% | 8 |
| 2020s | 21.2% | 15.1% | 26.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Panama
More education data for Panama
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 23,777 (2017)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 10,042 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 47,857 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 46,052 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 311,983 (2017)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 451,308 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.02 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0999 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Panama?
- Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Panama was 23.3% 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 Panama?
- The highest recorded value was 43.3% in 1999.
- What is the lowest share of children who are not in pre-primary school recorded in Panama?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.1% in 2022.
- How does Panama rank for share of children who are not in pre-primary school?
- Panama ranks 65th out of 179 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children who are not in pre-primary school rising or falling in Panama?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Panama 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.
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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.