Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in South Africa
South Africa: Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower was 6.6% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in South Africa, 1994–2023
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 South Africa is 6.6%, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of up 23.5% on the previous year and down 49.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in South Africa peaked at 17.9% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 2.8%, in 2021.
That places South Africa 70th out of 169 countries with data for 2023, putting it 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 and adolescents of primary and lower in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 12.5% | — |
| 1999 | 16.2% | +30.1% |
| 2000 | 17.9% | +10.1% |
| 2001 | 17.0% | -4.8% |
| 2002 | 15.3% | -10.4% |
| 2003 | 14.0% | -8.5% |
| 2004 | 12.9% | -7.9% |
| 2005 | 12.1% | -6.3% |
| 2017 | 13.0% | +7.5% |
| 2018 | 8.5% | -34.4% |
| 2019 | 7.2% | -15.1% |
| 2020 | 7.4% | +2.7% |
| 2021 | 2.8% | -62.1% |
| 2022 | 5.3% | +90.4% |
| 2023 | 6.6% | +23.5% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 6.6% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 5.8%, 1.1× the median. (49 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 6.6% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 19.1%, 34% of the median. (35 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 14.4% | 12.5% | 16.2% | 2 |
| 2000s | 14.8% | 12.1% | 17.9% | 6 |
| 2010s | 9.6% | 7.2% | 13.0% | 3 |
| 2020s | 5.5% | 2.8% | 7.4% | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 181,739 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 339,638 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 410,708 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 407,696 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.50 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.52 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.119 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in South Africa?
- Out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower in South Africa was 6.6% 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 South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 17.9% in 2000.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.8% in 2021.
- How does South Africa rank for out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower?
- South Africa ranks 70th out of 169 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-school rate for children and adolescents of primary and lower rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 49.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa 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, female (%). 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