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 1.18 GPIA in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
1.18 GPIA
Change on year
up 96.0%
World rank
9th
of 34 countries
All-time high
1.43 GPIA
in 2021
All-time low
0.5076 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
In 2024, out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa stood at 1.18 GPIA.
That represents a change of up 96.0% on the previous year and up 1.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa peaked at 1.43 GPIA in 2021 and was at its lowest, 0.5076 GPIA, in 2022.
South Africa ranks 9th of 34 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in South Africa, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1.16 GPIA | — |
| 2020 | 1.16 GPIA | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 1.43 GPIA | +23.9% |
| 2022 | 0.5076 GPIA | -64.6% |
| 2023 | 0.6045 GPIA | +19.1% |
| 2024 | 1.18 GPIA | +96.0% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 1.18 GPIA is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.01 GPIA, 1.2× the median. (11 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 1.18 GPIA is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.03 GPIA, 1.2× the median. (15 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 1.16 GPIA | 1.16 GPIA | 1.16 GPIA | 1 |
| 2020s | 0.978 GPIA | 0.5076 GPIA | 1.43 GPIA | 5 |
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 1.18 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 1.43 GPIA in 2021.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5076 GPIA in 2022.
- How does South Africa rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age?
- South Africa ranks 9th out of 34 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 up 1.7%. 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, rural, 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