Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Jamaica
Jamaica: Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper was 19.7% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Jamaica, 1999–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Jamaica is 19.7%, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of down 64.7% on the previous year and up 24.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Jamaica peaked at 55.8% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 14.7%, in 2016.
That places Jamaica 52nd out of 175 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 17 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Jamaica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 17.8% | — |
| 2000 | 21.5% | +20.6% |
| 2001 | 22.3% | +3.6% |
| 2002 | 20.7% | -7.3% |
| 2003 | 20.6% | -0.2% |
| 2004 | 16.9% | -17.9% |
| 2005 | 17.7% | +4.3% |
| 2013 | 15.8% | -10.7% |
| 2014 | 15.1% | -4.4% |
| 2015 | 15.7% | +4.1% |
| 2016 | 14.7% | -6.6% |
| 2017 | 16.8% | +14.3% |
| 2018 | 18.2% | +8.5% |
| 2019 | 18.8% | +3.2% |
| 2021 | 19.9% | +6.2% |
| 2022 | 55.8% | +179.9% |
| 2023 | 19.7% | -64.7% |
Jamaica compared with similar countries
- Jamaica's 19.7% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 12.8%, 1.5× the median. (51 countries reporting)
- Jamaica's 19.7% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 14.5%, 1.4× the median. (35 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Jamaica 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | +179.9% | 19.9% | 55.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 17.8% | 17.8% | 17.8% | 1 |
| 2000s | 20.0% | 16.9% | 22.3% | 6 |
| 2010s | 16.4% | 14.7% | 18.8% | 7 |
| 2020s | 31.8% | 19.7% | 55.8% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
More education data for Jamaica
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 11,043 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 4,597 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 52,983 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 51,265 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 177,095 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 211,097 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 8.14 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0744 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Jamaica?
- Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Jamaica was 19.7% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper recorded in Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 55.8% in 2022.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.7% in 2016.
- How does Jamaica rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper?
- Jamaica ranks 52nd out of 175 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 24.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Jamaica data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper secondary school age, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release