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 7.2% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa, 2000–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa is 7.2%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 26 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.4% on the previous year and down 32.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa peaked at 16.3% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 7.2%, in 2023.
South Africa ranks 92nd of 206 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 16.3% | — |
| 2001 | 15.8% | -3.1% |
| 2002 | 15.6% | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 16.1% | +3.2% |
| 2004 | 15.8% | -1.9% |
| 2005 | 14.9% | -5.7% |
| 2006 | 13.7% | -8.1% |
| 2007 | 12.6% | -8.0% |
| 2008 | 12.6% | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 13.1% | +4.0% |
| 2010 | 12.6% | -3.8% |
| 2011 | 12.3% | -2.4% |
| 2012 | 13.2% | +7.3% |
| 2013 | 13.5% | +2.3% |
| 2014 | 11.9% | -11.9% |
| 2015 | 10.7% | -10.1% |
| 2016 | 10.4% | -2.8% |
| 2017 | 10.3% | -1.0% |
| 2018 | 9.7% | -5.8% |
| 2019 | 8.9% | -8.2% |
| 2020 | 8.4% | -5.6% |
| 2021 | 8.2% | -2.4% |
| 2022 | 7.7% | -6.1% |
| 2023 | 7.2% | -6.5% |
| 2024 | 7.3% | +1.4% |
| 2025 | 7.2% | -1.4% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 7.2% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 5.3%, 1.3× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 7.2% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 34.3%, 21% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 14.7% | 12.6% | 16.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.3% | 8.9% | 13.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.7% | 7.2% | 8.4% | 6 |
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 of lower secondary school age in South Africa?
- Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa was 7.2% in 2025, 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 16.3% in 2000.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.2% in 2023.
- How does South Africa rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age?
- South Africa ranks 92nd out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- 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 32.7%. 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, both sexes (modelled data) (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release