Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Ghana
Ghana: Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary was 353,144 in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
353,144
Change on year
down 44.3%
World rank
38th
of 181 countries
All-time high
1.96 million
in 1999
All-time low
312,066
in 2016
Years of data
18
1999–2024
Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Ghana, 1999–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
Ghana recorded 353,144 for out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in 2024.
The figure is down 44.3% on the previous year and down 49.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Ghana peaked at 1.96 million in 1999 and was at its lowest, 312,066, in 2016.
Ghana ranks 38th of 181 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 and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Ghana, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 1.96 million | — |
| 2000 | 1.70 million | -13.3% |
| 2001 | 1.90 million | +11.7% |
| 2002 | 1.72 million | -9.5% |
| 2003 | 1.75 million | +1.6% |
| 2005 | 1.40 million | -20.1% |
| 2006 | 1.25 million | -10.7% |
| 2007 | 1.14 million | -8.8% |
| 2008 | 921,861 | -19.0% |
| 2009 | 937,076 | +1.7% |
| 2014 | 703,392 | -24.9% |
| 2016 | 312,066 | -55.6% |
| 2017 | 616,823 | +97.7% |
| 2018 | 764,053 | +23.9% |
| 2019 | 564,860 | -26.1% |
| 2020 | 751,274 | +33.0% |
| 2021 | 634,414 | -15.6% |
| 2024 | 353,144 | -44.3% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 353,144 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 246,522, 1.4× the median. (39 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 353,144 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 544,931, 65% of the median. (35 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1.96 million | 1.96 million | 1.96 million | 1 |
| 2000s | 1.41 million | 921,861 | 1.90 million | 9 |
| 2010s | 592,239 | 312,066 | 764,053 | 5 |
| 2020s | 579,611 | 353,144 | 751,274 | 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 and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Ghana?
- Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Ghana was 353,144 in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 1.96 million in 1999.
- What is the lowest out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 312,066 in 2016.
- How does Ghana rank for out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary?
- Ghana ranks 38th out of 181 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is down 49.8%. 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 and adolescents of primary and lower 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