Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Ghana
Ghana: Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and was 1.59 million in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
1.59 million
Change on year
up 21.2%
World rank
25th
of 178 countries
All-time high
3.10 million
in 2001
All-time low
1.00 million
in 2016
Years of data
18
1999–2024
Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Ghana, 1999–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
Ghana recorded 1.59 million for out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 21.2% on the previous year and up 10.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Ghana peaked at 3.10 million in 2001 and was at its lowest, 1.00 million, in 2016.
Ghana ranks 25th of 178 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 18 years of available data.
Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Ghana, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 3.06 million | — |
| 2000 | 2.84 million | -7.4% |
| 2001 | 3.10 million | +9.2% |
| 2002 | 2.92 million | -5.6% |
| 2003 | 3.04 million | +4.1% |
| 2005 | 2.63 million | -13.6% |
| 2006 | 2.34 million | -11.1% |
| 2007 | 1.99 million | -14.7% |
| 2008 | 1.79 million | -10.2% |
| 2009 | 1.85 million | +3.3% |
| 2014 | 1.44 million | -22.3% |
| 2016 | 1.00 million | -30.2% |
| 2017 | 1.34 million | +33.9% |
| 2018 | 1.42 million | +6.1% |
| 2019 | 1.16 million | -18.2% |
| 2020 | 1.30 million | +12.1% |
| 2021 | 1.31 million | +0.4% |
| 2024 | 1.59 million | +21.2% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 1.59 million is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 429,706, 3.7× the median. (37 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 1.59 million is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.13 million, 1.4× the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.06 million | 3.06 million | 3.06 million | 1 |
| 2000s | 2.50 million | 1.79 million | 3.10 million | 9 |
| 2010s | 1.27 million | 1.00 million | 1.44 million | 5 |
| 2020s | 1.40 million | 1.30 million | 1.59 million | 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 out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Ghana?
- Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Ghana was 1.59 million in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 3.10 million in 2001.
- What is the lowest out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.00 million in 2016.
- How does Ghana rank for out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and?
- Ghana ranks 25th out of 178 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and secondary school age, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release