Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Cameroon
Cameroon: Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper was 54.2% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
54.2%
Change on year
up 2.4%
World rank
13th
of 179 countries
All-time high
68.5%
in 1971
All-time low
40.5%
in 2016
Years of data
9
1971–2023
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Cameroon, 1971–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Cameroon recorded 54.2% for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in 2023.
The figure is up 2.4% on the previous year and up 19.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Cameroon peaked at 68.5% in 1971 and was at its lowest, 40.5%, in 2016.
That places Cameroon 13th out of 179 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Cameroon, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 68.5% | — |
| 1972 | 67.9% | -1.0% |
| 2012 | 45.4% | -33.1% |
| 2014 | 42.6% | -6.3% |
| 2015 | 41.5% | -2.5% |
| 2016 | 40.5% | -2.4% |
| 2021 | 54.0% | +33.3% |
| 2022 | 53.0% | -1.9% |
| 2023 | 54.2% | +2.4% |
Cameroon compared with similar countries
- Cameroon's 54.2% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 25.6%, 2.1× the median. (38 countries reporting)
- Cameroon's 54.2% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 38.8%, 1.4× the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 68.2% | 67.9% | 68.5% | 2 |
| 2010s | 42.5% | 40.5% | 45.4% | 4 |
| 2020s | 53.7% | 53.0% | 54.2% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Cameroon
More education data for Cameroon
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 118,092 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 611,326 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 321,494 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 322,873 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.01 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.29 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.6 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1816 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Cameroon?
- Out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper in Cameroon was 54.2% 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 Cameroon?
- The highest recorded value was 68.5% in 1971.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper recorded in Cameroon?
- The lowest recorded value was 40.5% in 2016.
- How does Cameroon rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper?
- Cameroon ranks 13th out of 179 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-school rate for adolescents and youth of lower and upper rising or falling in Cameroon?
- Over the last ten years it is up 19.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Cameroon 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, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release