Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Africa
South Africa: Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper was 0.775 GPIA in 2023. ▲ Rising
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Africa, 1994–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.
Analysis
The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Africa is 0.775 GPIA, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 53.3% on the previous year and up 38.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Africa peaked at 1.66 GPIA in 2022 and was at its lowest, 0.4769 GPIA, in 1994.
South Africa ranks 126th of 175 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Africa, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 0.4769 GPIA | — |
| 1999 | 0.932 GPIA | +95.4% |
| 2000 | 0.9753 GPIA | +4.6% |
| 2001 | 0.9637 GPIA | -1.2% |
| 2002 | 0.9702 GPIA | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 0.949 GPIA | -2.2% |
| 2004 | 0.9341 GPIA | -1.6% |
| 2005 | 0.9348 GPIA | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 0.5595 GPIA | -40.2% |
| 2018 | 0.8354 GPIA | +49.3% |
| 2019 | 0.8798 GPIA | +5.3% |
| 2020 | 0.7893 GPIA | -10.3% |
| 2021 | 0.6948 GPIA | -12.0% |
| 2022 | 1.66 GPIA | +138.8% |
| 2023 | 0.775 GPIA | -53.3% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 0.775 GPIA is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.8418 GPIA, 92% of the median. (51 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 0.775 GPIA is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.9365 GPIA, 83% of the median. (34 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Africa 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 | +138.8% | 0.6948 GPIA | 1.66 GPIA |
| 1999 | +95.4% | 0.4769 GPIA | 0.932 GPIA |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.7045 GPIA | 0.4769 GPIA | 0.932 GPIA | 2 |
| 2000s | 0.9545 GPIA | 0.9341 GPIA | 0.9753 GPIA | 6 |
| 2010s | 0.7582 GPIA | 0.5595 GPIA | 0.8798 GPIA | 3 |
| 2020s | 0.9797 GPIA | 0.6948 GPIA | 1.66 GPIA | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 181,739 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 339,638 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 410,708 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 407,696 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.50 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.52 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.119 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Africa?
- Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in South Africa was 0.775 GPIA 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 South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 1.66 GPIA in 2022.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4769 GPIA in 1994.
- How does South Africa rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper?
- South Africa ranks 126th 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 South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 38.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa 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, adjusted gender parity index (GPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release