Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Malawi
Malawi: Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary was 0.9004 GPIA in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
0.9004 GPIA
World rank
90th
of 171 countries
All-time high
1.43 GPIA
in 1999
All-time low
0.9004 GPIA
in 2023
Years of data
15
1999–2023
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Malawi, 1999–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.
Analysis
In 2023, out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Malawi stood at 0.9004 GPIA. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 17.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Malawi peaked at 1.43 GPIA in 1999 and was at its lowest, 0.9004 GPIA, in 2023.
Malawi ranks 90th of 171 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Malawi, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 1.43 GPIA | — |
| 2002 | 1.41 GPIA | -1.4% |
| 2004 | 1.2 GPIA | -14.3% |
| 2005 | 1.18 GPIA | -1.9% |
| 2006 | 1.15 GPIA | -3.1% |
| 2007 | 1.16 GPIA | +1.3% |
| 2008 | 1.21 GPIA | +4.3% |
| 2009 | 1.15 GPIA | -4.6% |
| 2013 | 1.08 GPIA | -6.1% |
| 2014 | 1.06 GPIA | -2.5% |
| 2015 | 1.04 GPIA | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 1.04 GPIA | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 1.04 GPIA | -0.6% |
| 2019 | 1.08 GPIA | +4.0% |
| 2023 | 0.9004 GPIA | -16.4% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 0.9004 GPIA is below the median for low income countries, which is 0.9434 GPIA, 95% of the median. (16 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 0.9004 GPIA is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.9304 GPIA, 97% of the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1.43 GPIA | 1.43 GPIA | 1.43 GPIA | 1 |
| 2000s | 1.21 GPIA | 1.15 GPIA | 1.41 GPIA | 7 |
| 2010s | 1.06 GPIA | 1.04 GPIA | 1.08 GPIA | 6 |
| 2020s | 0.9004 GPIA | 0.9004 GPIA | 0.9004 GPIA | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 87 Cuba 0.9046 GPIA compare
- 88 Bahrain 0.9041 GPIA compare
- 89 Mauritania 0.9017 GPIA compare
- 91 Micronesia, Federated States of 0.9004 GPIA compare
- 92 Madagascar 0.898 GPIA compare
- 93 Barbados 0.8966 GPIA compare
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 children, adolescents and youth of primary in Malawi?
- Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Malawi was 0.9004 GPIA 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 Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 1.43 GPIA in 1999.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.9004 GPIA in 2023.
- How does Malawi rank for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary?
- Malawi ranks 90th out of 171 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.0%. 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 children, adolescents and youth of primary, lower secondary and upper secondary school age, adjusted gender parity index (GPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release