Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in Malawi
Malawi: Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age was 23.0% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in Malawi, 2002–2024
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 Malawi is 23.0%, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 7.7% on the previous year and up 5.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in Malawi peaked at 33.9% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 16.8%, in 2020.
Malawi ranks 37th of 162 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 22 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 19.4% | — |
| 2004 | 25.5% | +31.1% |
| 2005 | 33.9% | +33.0% |
| 2006 | 30.4% | -10.3% |
| 2007 | 23.8% | -21.7% |
| 2008 | 19.6% | -17.8% |
| 2009 | 20.7% | +5.7% |
| 2010 | 22.6% | +9.2% |
| 2011 | 20.6% | -8.9% |
| 2012 | 21.6% | +5.2% |
| 2013 | 20.2% | -6.5% |
| 2014 | 21.8% | +7.5% |
| 2015 | 22.2% | +1.9% |
| 2016 | 24.1% | +8.7% |
| 2017 | 17.0% | -29.4% |
| 2018 | 17.8% | +4.7% |
| 2019 | 22.8% | +28.2% |
| 2020 | 16.8% | -26.4% |
| 2021 | 29.7% | +76.8% |
| 2022 | 28.3% | -4.8% |
| 2023 | 24.9% | -12.1% |
| 2024 | 23.0% | -7.7% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 23.0% is below the median for low income countries, which is 43.3%, 53% of the median. (17 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 23.0% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 28.7%, 80% of the median. (35 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 24.8% | 19.4% | 33.9% | 7 |
| 2010s | 21.1% | 17.0% | 24.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 24.5% | 16.8% | 29.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More education data for Malawi
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 14,528 (2019)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1.25 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.16 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.75 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.7 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0004 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.2193 units per person (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 4.75 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in Malawi?
- Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in Malawi was 23.0% 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 Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 33.9% in 2005.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 16.8% in 2020.
- How does Malawi rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age?
- Malawi ranks 37th out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi 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, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release