Children out of school, primary in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: Children out of school, primary was 4.24 million in 2024. ▼ Falling
Children out of school, primary in Ethiopia, 1987–2024
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for children out of school, primary in Ethiopia is 4.24 million, measured in 2024.
The figure is down 4.2% on the previous year and up 31.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, children out of school, primary in Ethiopia peaked at 6.99 million in 2003 and was at its lowest, 1.83 million, in 2017.
Ethiopia ranks 4th of 197 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 28 years of available data.
Children out of school, primary in Ethiopia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 4.77 million | — |
| 1988 | 4.91 million | +3.1% |
| 1989 | 5.18 million | +5.3% |
| 1994 | 6.77 million | +30.8% |
| 1995 | 6.83 million | +0.8% |
| 1996 | 6.78 million | -0.7% |
| 1998 | 6.83 million | +0.8% |
| 1999 | 6.96 million | +1.8% |
| 2000 | 6.89 million | -1.0% |
| 2001 | 6.75 million | -2.0% |
| 2002 | 6.81 million | +0.9% |
| 2003 | 6.99 million | +2.6% |
| 2004 | 6.88 million | -1.6% |
| 2005 | 5.69 million | -17.3% |
| 2006 | 5.18 million | -9.0% |
| 2007 | 4.53 million | -12.5% |
| 2008 | 3.80 million | -16.2% |
| 2009 | 3.94 million | +3.7% |
| 2010 | 4.34 million | +10.2% |
| 2011 | 4.57 million | +5.3% |
| 2012 | 3.83 million | -16.1% |
| 2014 | 3.23 million | -15.7% |
| 2015 | 3.48 million | +7.7% |
| 2017 | 1.83 million | -47.5% |
| 2021 | 4.68 million | +156.3% |
| 2022 | 4.52 million | -3.5% |
| 2023 | 4.42 million | -2.1% |
| 2024 | 4.24 million | -4.2% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Children out of school, primary in Ethiopia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | +156.3% | 1.83 million | 4.68 million |
| 2017 | -47.5% | 3.48 million | 1.83 million |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4.95 million | 4.77 million | 5.18 million | 3 |
| 1990s | 6.83 million | 6.77 million | 6.96 million | 5 |
| 2000s | 5.75 million | 3.80 million | 6.99 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.55 million | 1.83 million | 4.57 million | 6 |
| 2020s | 4.47 million | 4.24 million | 4.68 million | 4 |
Countries ranked near Ethiopia
More education data for Ethiopia
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 74.92 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 77.54 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 272,545 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 900,151 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.32 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 2.16 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.03 million (2015)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 15.93 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.45 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is children out of school, primary in Ethiopia?
- Children out of school, primary in Ethiopia was 4.24 million in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest children out of school, primary recorded in Ethiopia?
- The highest recorded value was 6.99 million in 2003.
- What is the lowest children out of school, primary recorded in Ethiopia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.83 million in 2017.
- How does Ethiopia rank for children out of school, primary?
- Ethiopia ranks 4th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
- Is children out of school, primary rising or falling in Ethiopia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 31.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ethiopia data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Children out of school, primary. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Children out of school are the number of primary-school-age children not enrolled in primary or secondary school.