Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Malaysia
Malaysia: Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower was 13.9% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Malaysia, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Malaysia is 13.9%, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 18.0% on the previous year and up 47.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Malaysia peaked at 18.9% in 1970 and was at its lowest, 4.4%, in 1998.
That places Malaysia 44th out of 181 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 30 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 18.9% | — |
| 1971 | 17.2% | -9.0% |
| 1972 | 15.4% | -10.3% |
| 1998 | 4.4% | -71.4% |
| 1999 | 5.1% | +15.4% |
| 2000 | 5.0% | -1.4% |
| 2001 | 6.7% | +33.4% |
| 2002 | 8.9% | +33.0% |
| 2003 | 6.9% | -22.4% |
| 2004 | 5.6% | -18.7% |
| 2005 | 6.5% | +16.3% |
| 2006 | 7.3% | +11.4% |
| 2007 | 7.4% | +1.4% |
| 2008 | 7.0% | -5.2% |
| 2009 | 6.4% | -9.1% |
| 2010 | 6.4% | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 6.7% | +5.4% |
| 2012 | 7.4% | +10.3% |
| 2013 | 7.7% | +4.2% |
| 2014 | 9.5% | +23.0% |
| 2015 | 11.1% | +17.3% |
| 2016 | 12.2% | +9.7% |
| 2017 | 12.6% | +3.6% |
| 2018 | 13.1% | +4.1% |
| 2019 | 14.5% | +10.6% |
| 2020 | 14.6% | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 14.1% | -3.5% |
| 2022 | 14.1% | -0.5% |
| 2023 | 11.8% | -15.9% |
| 2024 | 13.9% | +18.0% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 13.9% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 5.0%, 2.8× the median. (53 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 13.9% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.9%, 3.6× the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 17.2% | 15.4% | 18.9% | 3 |
| 1990s | 4.7% | 4.4% | 5.1% | 2 |
| 2000s | 6.8% | 5.0% | 8.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.1% | 6.4% | 14.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.7% | 11.8% | 14.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More education data for Malaysia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 217,105 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 475,967 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 460,041 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.64 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.06 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.2 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0859 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Malaysia?
- Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Malaysia was 13.9% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 18.9% in 1970.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.4% in 1998.
- How does Malaysia rank for out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower?
- Malaysia ranks 44th out of 181 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 47.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malaysia 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 30 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release