Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Iraq
Iraq: Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower was 17.7% in 2007. ▼ Falling
Latest (2007)
17.7%
Change on year
down 22.8%
World rank
34th
of 181 countries
All-time high
40.6%
in 1975
All-time low
13.5%
in 1980
Years of data
17
1975–2007
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Iraq, 1975–2007
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Iraq recorded 17.7% for out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in 2007.
The figure is down 22.8% on the previous year and down 32.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Iraq peaked at 40.6% in 1975 and was at its lowest, 13.5%, in 1980.
That places Iraq 34th out of 181 countries with data for 2007, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 17 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Iraq, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 40.6% | — |
| 1976 | 34.0% | -16.3% |
| 1977 | 31.6% | -7.3% |
| 1978 | 28.7% | -9.0% |
| 1979 | 16.7% | -41.8% |
| 1980 | 13.5% | -19.4% |
| 1981 | 14.7% | +9.3% |
| 1985 | 20.0% | +35.7% |
| 1987 | 18.8% | -6.1% |
| 1988 | 18.6% | -1.1% |
| 1989 | 19.2% | +3.4% |
| 1993 | 26.8% | +39.3% |
| 1999 | 26.3% | -1.9% |
| 2000 | 26.8% | +2.2% |
| 2003 | 23.2% | -13.5% |
| 2004 | 22.9% | -1.2% |
| 2007 | 17.7% | -22.8% |
Iraq compared with similar countries
- Iraq's 17.7% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 5.0%, 3.5× the median. (53 countries reporting)
- Iraq's 17.7% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 6.3%, 2.8× the median. (20 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 30.3% | 16.7% | 40.6% | 5 |
| 1980s | 17.5% | 13.5% | 20.0% | 6 |
| 1990s | 26.5% | 26.3% | 26.8% | 2 |
| 2000s | 22.7% | 17.7% | 26.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iraq
- 31 Côte d'Ivoire 19.3%
- 32 Madagascar 18.5% compare
- 33 Mauritania 18.3% compare
- 35 El Salvador 17.5% compare
- 36 Tunisia 16.8% compare
- 37 Guatemala 16.2% compare
More education data for Iraq
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 148,363 (2007)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 818,729 (2007)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 55,944 (2007)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 52,985 (2007)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.04 million (2007)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.86 million (2007)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.26 % change on previous year (2004)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2007)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1713 units per person (2007)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Iraq?
- Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Iraq was 17.7% in 2007, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower recorded in Iraq?
- The highest recorded value was 40.6% in 1975.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower recorded in Iraq?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.5% in 1980.
- How does Iraq rank for out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower?
- Iraq ranks 34th out of 181 countries with data for 2007.
- Is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower rising or falling in Iraq?
- Over the last ten years it is down 32.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Iraq data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release