Official entrance age to compulsory education (years) (entrance years) in Malawi
Malawi: Official entrance age to compulsory education (years) (entrance years) was 6 years in 2025. ▬ Flat
Latest (2025)
6 years
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
21st
of 206 countries
All-time high
6 years
in 1998
All-time low
6 years
in 1998
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Official entrance age to compulsory education in Malawi, 1998–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for official entrance age to compulsory education in Malawi is 6 years, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, official entrance age to compulsory education in Malawi peaked at 6 years in 1998 and was at its lowest, 6 years, in 1998.
Malawi ranks 21st of 206 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
Official entrance age to compulsory education (years) (entrance years) in Malawi, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 6 years | — |
| 1999 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 6 years | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 6 years | +0.0% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 6 years is above the median for low income countries, which is 6 years, 1.0× the median. (22 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 6 years is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 6 years, 1.0× the median. (44 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6 years | 6 years | 6 years | 2 |
| 2000s | 6 years | 6 years | 6 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 6 years | 6 years | 6 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 6 years | 6 years | 6 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 21 Albania 6 years compare
- 21 Andorra 6 years compare
- 21 United Arab Emirates 6 years compare
- 21 Armenia 6 years compare
- 21 Australia 6 years compare
- 21 Azerbaijan 6 years compare
- 21 Benin 6 years compare
- 21 Burkina Faso 6 years compare
- 21 Bangladesh 6 years compare
- 21 Bahrain 6 years compare
- 21 Bosnia and Herzegovina 6 years compare
- 21 Belarus 6 years compare
- 21 Brunei 6 years compare
- 21 Central African Republic 6 years compare
- 21 Canada 6 years compare
- 21 Chile 6 years compare
- 21 China 6 years compare
- 21 Cote d'Ivoire 6 years compare
- 21 Cameroon 6 years compare
- 21 Democratic Republic of Congo 6 years compare
- 21 Congo 6 years compare
- 21 Comoros 6 years compare
- 21 Cape Verde 6 years compare
- 21 Cuba 6 years compare
- 21 Germany 6 years compare
- 21 Djibouti 6 years compare
- 21 Denmark 6 years compare
- 21 Algeria 6 years compare
- 21 Egypt 6 years compare
- 21 Eritrea 6 years compare
- 21 Spain 6 years compare
- 21 Finland 6 years compare
- 21 Micronesia (country) 6 years compare
- 21 Gabon 6 years compare
- 21 Georgia 6 years compare
- 21 Guinea-Bissau 6 years compare
- 21 Guyana 6 years compare
- 21 Hong Kong 6 years compare
- 21 Haiti 6 years compare
- 21 India 6 years compare
- 21 Ireland 6 years compare
- 21 Iran 6 years compare
- 21 Iraq 6 years compare
- 21 Iceland 6 years compare
- 21 Italy 6 years compare
- 21 Jamaica 6 years compare
- 21 Jordan 6 years compare
- 21 Japan 6 years compare
- 21 Kazakhstan 6 years compare
- 21 Kenya 6 years compare
- 21 Kyrgyzstan 6 years compare
- 21 Kiribati 6 years compare
- 21 South Korea 6 years compare
- 21 Kuwait 6 years compare
- 21 Laos 6 years compare
- 21 Lebanon 6 years compare
- 21 Liberia 6 years compare
- 21 Libya 6 years compare
- 21 Lesotho 6 years compare
- 21 Lithuania 6 years compare
- 21 Morocco 6 years compare
- 21 Monaco 6 years compare
- 21 Moldova 6 years compare
- 21 Madagascar 6 years compare
- 21 North Macedonia 6 years compare
- 21 Montenegro 6 years compare
- 21 Mongolia 6 years compare
- 21 Mauritania 6 years compare
- 21 Malaysia 6 years compare
- 21 Nigeria 6 years compare
- 21 Norway 6 years compare
- 21 New Zealand 6 years compare
- 21 Oman 6 years compare
- 21 Palau 6 years compare
- 21 Poland 6 years compare
- 21 North Korea 6 years compare
- 21 Portugal 6 years compare
- 21 Palestine 6 years compare
- 21 Qatar 6 years compare
- 21 Rwanda 6 years compare
- 21 Saudi Arabia 6 years compare
- 21 Sudan 6 years compare
- 21 Senegal 6 years compare
- 21 Singapore 6 years compare
- 21 Sierra Leone 6 years compare
- 21 San Marino 6 years compare
- 21 Somalia 6 years compare
- 21 South Sudan 6 years compare
- 21 Sao Tome and Principe 6 years compare
- 21 Slovenia 6 years compare
- 21 Sweden 6 years compare
- 21 Eswatini 6 years compare
- 21 Seychelles 6 years compare
- 21 Syria 6 years compare
- 21 Chad 6 years compare
- 21 Togo 6 years compare
- 21 Thailand 6 years compare
- 21 Turkmenistan 6 years compare
- 21 East Timor 6 years compare
- 21 Tunisia 6 years compare
- 21 Turkey 6 years compare
- 21 Tuvalu 6 years compare
- 21 Uganda 6 years compare
- 21 Ukraine 6 years compare
- 21 United States 6 years compare
- 21 Yemen 6 years compare
- 21 Zimbabwe 6 years compare
More education data for Malawi
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 98.49 (2007)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.57 (2023)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 14,528 (2019)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1.25 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.16 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.75 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.7 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0004 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.2193 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is official entrance age to compulsory education in Malawi?
- Official entrance age to compulsory education in Malawi was 6 years in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest official entrance age to compulsory education recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 6 years in 1998.
- What is the lowest official entrance age to compulsory education recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 6 years in 1998.
- How does Malawi rank for official entrance age to compulsory education?
- Malawi ranks 21st out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is official entrance age to compulsory education rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Official entrance age to compulsory education (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release