Enrolment in primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa
UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa: Enrolment in primary education, both sexes was 58.93 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
58.93 million
Change on year
up 0.9%
Rank
122nd
of 221 groups
All-time high
58.93 million
in 2024
All-time low
19.31 million
in 1971
Years of data
55
1970–2024
Enrolment in primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa recorded 58.93 million for enrolment in primary education, both sexes in 2024. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.
The figure is up 0.9% on the previous year and up 25.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, enrolment in primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa peaked at 58.93 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 19.31 million, in 1971.
That places UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa 122nd out of 221 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.
Enrolment in primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 19.85 million | — |
| 1971 | 19.31 million | -2.7% |
| 1972 | 19.81 million | +2.6% |
| 1973 | 20.38 million | +2.8% |
| 1974 | 21.03 million | +3.2% |
| 1975 | 22.16 million | +5.4% |
| 1976 | 23.27 million | +5.0% |
| 1977 | 24.20 million | +4.0% |
| 1978 | 25.00 million | +3.3% |
| 1979 | 22.75 million | -9.0% |
| 1980 | 26.59 million | +16.9% |
| 1981 | 26.98 million | +1.5% |
| 1982 | 28.17 million | +4.4% |
| 1983 | 29.21 million | +3.7% |
| 1984 | 30.39 million | +4.0% |
| 1985 | 31.29 million | +3.0% |
| 1986 | 32.56 million | +4.1% |
| 1987 | 33.96 million | +4.3% |
| 1988 | 35.33 million | +4.0% |
| 1989 | 36.41 million | +3.0% |
| 1990 | 36.81 million | +1.1% |
| 1991 | 38.56 million | +4.8% |
| 1992 | 38.57 million | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 39.43 million | +2.2% |
| 1994 | 40.83 million | +3.5% |
| 1995 | 40.62 million | -0.5% |
| 1996 | 41.64 million | +2.5% |
| 1997 | 41.91 million | +0.7% |
| 1998 | 42.10 million | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 42.26 million | +0.4% |
| 2000 | 42.24 million | -0.0% |
| 2001 | 42.42 million | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 42.50 million | +0.2% |
| 2003 | 41.59 million | -2.1% |
| 2004 | 41.37 million | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 42.52 million | +2.8% |
| 2006 | 42.86 million | +0.8% |
| 2007 | 42.66 million | -0.5% |
| 2008 | 42.65 million | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 42.51 million | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 43.11 million | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 43.48 million | +0.9% |
| 2012 | 44.76 million | +2.9% |
| 2013 | 46.02 million | +2.8% |
| 2014 | 47.10 million | +2.3% |
| 2015 | 48.27 million | +2.5% |
| 2016 | 49.68 million | +2.9% |
| 2017 | 51.20 million | +3.1% |
| 2018 | 52.49 million | +2.5% |
| 2019 | 53.92 million | +2.7% |
| 2020 | 55.38 million | +2.7% |
| 2021 | 56.39 million | +1.8% |
| 2022 | 56.54 million | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 58.42 million | +3.3% |
| 2024 | 58.93 million | +0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 21.78 million | 19.31 million | 25.00 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 31.09 million | 26.59 million | 36.41 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 40.27 million | 36.81 million | 42.26 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 42.33 million | 41.37 million | 42.86 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 48.00 million | 43.11 million | 53.92 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 57.13 million | 55.38 million | 58.93 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa
More education data for UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 6.15 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 21.65 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 2.17 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 23.21 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.71 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 6.49 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual -0.5257 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 17.53 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 8.61 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 6.11 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is enrolment in primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa?
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa was 58.93 million in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest enrolment in primary education, both sexes recorded in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 58.93 million in 2024.
- What is the lowest enrolment in primary education, both sexes recorded in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 19.31 million in 1971.
- How does UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa rank for enrolment in primary education, both sexes?
- UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa ranks 122nd out of 221 groups with data for 2024.
- Is enrolment in primary education, both sexes rising or falling in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 25.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release