Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Panama
Panama: Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower was 12.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Panama, 1999–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Panama recorded 12.6% for out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 97.9% on the previous year and up 86.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Panama peaked at 15.0% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 4.7%, in 2008.
Panama ranks 46th of 181 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 20 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Panama, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 12.3% | — |
| 2000 | 10.7% | -12.7% |
| 2001 | 8.7% | -19.1% |
| 2002 | 6.4% | -26.2% |
| 2004 | 5.8% | -8.9% |
| 2005 | 6.6% | +13.8% |
| 2006 | 6.2% | -6.3% |
| 2008 | 4.7% | -23.9% |
| 2009 | 6.0% | +26.2% |
| 2010 | 4.9% | -17.7% |
| 2011 | 6.3% | +29.4% |
| 2013 | 6.8% | +7.2% |
| 2014 | 9.3% | +37.5% |
| 2015 | 9.8% | +5.3% |
| 2017 | 12.5% | +26.7% |
| 2019 | 15.0% | +20.4% |
| 2020 | 13.4% | -10.6% |
| 2021 | 6.8% | -49.6% |
| 2022 | 6.4% | -5.6% |
| 2023 | 12.6% | +97.9% |
Panama compared with similar countries
- Panama's 12.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 1.8%, 7.2× the median. (69 countries reporting)
- Panama's 12.6% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 7.6%, 1.7× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 12.3% | 12.3% | 12.3% | 1 |
| 2000s | 6.9% | 4.7% | 10.7% | 8 |
| 2010s | 9.2% | 4.9% | 15.0% | 7 |
| 2020s | 9.8% | 6.4% | 13.4% | 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 and adolescents of primary and lower in Panama?
- Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in Panama was 12.6% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower recorded in Panama?
- The highest recorded value was 15.0% in 2019.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower recorded in Panama?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.7% in 2008.
- How does Panama rank for out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower?
- Panama ranks 46th out of 181 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower rising or falling in Panama?
- Over the last ten years it is up 86.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- 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 and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 20 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release