Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Jamaica
Jamaica: Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary was 15.6% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Jamaica, 1999–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Jamaica recorded 15.6% for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in 2024.
The figure is down 4.6% on the previous year and up 2.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Jamaica peaked at 19.0% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 13.7%, in 2016.
That places Jamaica 51st out of 171 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 18 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Jamaica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 16.0% | — |
| 2000 | 17.6% | +9.7% |
| 2001 | 17.5% | -0.4% |
| 2002 | 17.2% | -1.6% |
| 2003 | 17.8% | +3.2% |
| 2004 | 14.1% | -20.8% |
| 2005 | 14.7% | +4.2% |
| 2013 | 14.4% | -1.7% |
| 2014 | 15.2% | +5.6% |
| 2015 | 17.2% | +12.9% |
| 2016 | 13.7% | -20.4% |
| 2017 | 15.3% | +11.7% |
| 2018 | 15.4% | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 14.8% | -3.5% |
| 2021 | 19.0% | +28.3% |
| 2022 | 13.9% | -27.1% |
| 2023 | 16.3% | +17.9% |
| 2024 | 15.6% | -4.6% |
Jamaica compared with similar countries
- Jamaica's 15.6% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 9.3%, 1.7× the median. (51 countries reporting)
- Jamaica's 15.6% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 11.5%, 1.4× the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 16.0% | 16.0% | 16.0% | 1 |
| 2000s | 16.5% | 14.1% | 17.8% | 6 |
| 2010s | 15.1% | 13.7% | 17.2% | 7 |
| 2020s | 16.2% | 13.9% | 19.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
More education data for Jamaica
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 11,043 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 4,597 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 52,983 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 51,265 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 177,095 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 211,097 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 8.14 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0744 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Jamaica?
- Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Jamaica was 15.6% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary recorded in Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 19.0% in 2021.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.7% in 2016.
- How does Jamaica rank for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary?
- Jamaica ranks 51st out of 171 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Jamaica 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, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release