Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa
South Africa: Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age was 0.7163 GPIA in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
0.7163 GPIA
Change on year
down 30.7%
World rank
41st
of 52 countries
All-time high
1.33 GPIA
in 2020
All-time low
0.6541 GPIA
in 2022
Years of data
6
2016–2024
Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa, 2016–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 0.7163 GPIA for out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in 2024.
That represents a change of down 30.7% on the previous year and down 25.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa peaked at 1.33 GPIA in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.6541 GPIA, in 2022.
That places South Africa 41st out of 52 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.9595 GPIA | — |
| 2020 | 1.33 GPIA | +38.3% |
| 2021 | 1.27 GPIA | -4.5% |
| 2022 | 0.6541 GPIA | -48.4% |
| 2023 | 1.03 GPIA | +58.1% |
| 2024 | 0.7163 GPIA | -30.7% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 0.7163 GPIA is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.8313 GPIA, 86% of the median. (13 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 0.7163 GPIA is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.9657 GPIA, 74% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 0.9595 GPIA | 0.9595 GPIA | 0.9595 GPIA | 1 |
| 2020s | 0.9998 GPIA | 0.6541 GPIA | 1.33 GPIA | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 38 Senegal 0.7992 GPIA compare
- 39 Sierra Leone 0.7594 GPIA
- 40 Jordan 0.7221 GPIA compare
- 42 El Salvador 0.7143 GPIA compare
- 43 Russian Federation 0.7062 GPIA compare
- 44 Tunisia 0.6736 GPIA compare
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 of lower secondary school age in South Africa?
- Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa was 0.7163 GPIA in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 1.33 GPIA in 2020.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6541 GPIA in 2022.
- How does South Africa rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age?
- South Africa ranks 41st out of 52 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 25.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- 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 of lower secondary school age, adjusted gender parity index (household survey data) (GPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 6 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release