Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Panama
Panama: Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary was 16.3% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Panama, 1999–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Panama is 16.3%, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of up 49.0% on the previous year and up 27.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Panama peaked at 19.9% in 2017 and was at its lowest, 10.9%, in 2021.
That places Panama 50th out of 178 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 19 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Panama, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 19.1% | — |
| 2000 | 18.2% | -4.6% |
| 2001 | 16.5% | -9.6% |
| 2002 | 14.4% | -12.4% |
| 2004 | 13.8% | -4.3% |
| 2005 | 14.2% | +3.1% |
| 2008 | 12.9% | -9.6% |
| 2009 | 13.4% | +4.1% |
| 2010 | 12.9% | -3.4% |
| 2011 | 13.5% | +4.2% |
| 2013 | 12.7% | -5.4% |
| 2014 | 14.8% | +16.4% |
| 2015 | 15.2% | +2.5% |
| 2017 | 19.9% | +31.2% |
| 2019 | 19.4% | -2.9% |
| 2020 | 19.1% | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 10.9% | -42.9% |
| 2022 | 10.9% | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 16.3% | +49.0% |
Panama compared with similar countries
- Panama's 16.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 3.5%, 4.7× the median. (68 countries reporting)
- Panama's 16.3% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 10.6%, 1.5× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Panama changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | +49.0% | 10.9% | 16.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 19.1% | 19.1% | 19.1% | 1 |
| 2000s | 14.8% | 12.9% | 18.2% | 7 |
| 2010s | 15.5% | 12.7% | 19.9% | 7 |
| 2020s | 14.3% | 10.9% | 19.1% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Panama
More education data for Panama
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 23,777 (2017)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 10,042 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 47,857 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 46,052 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 311,983 (2017)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 451,308 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.02 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0999 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Panama?
- Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Panama was 16.3% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary recorded in Panama?
- The highest recorded value was 19.9% in 2017.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary recorded in Panama?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.9% in 2021.
- How does Panama rank for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary?
- Panama ranks 50th out of 178 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary rising or falling in Panama?
- Over the last ten years it is up 27.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Panama data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary, lower secondary and upper secondary school age, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 19 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release