Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in South Africa
South Africa: Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted was 0.6278 GPIA in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
0.6278 GPIA
Change on year
down 23.2%
World rank
48th
of 52 countries
All-time high
1.22 GPIA
in 2021
All-time low
0.6278 GPIA
in 2024
Years of data
6
2016–2024
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in South Africa, 2016–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 0.6278 GPIA for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 6 years on record.
That represents a change of down 23.2% on the previous year and down 17.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in South Africa peaked at 1.22 GPIA in 2021 and was at its lowest, 0.6278 GPIA, in 2024.
South Africa ranks 48th of 52 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in South Africa, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.765 GPIA | — |
| 2020 | 0.8496 GPIA | +11.1% |
| 2021 | 1.22 GPIA | +43.2% |
| 2022 | 0.8438 GPIA | -30.6% |
| 2023 | 0.8174 GPIA | -3.1% |
| 2024 | 0.6278 GPIA | -23.2% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 0.6278 GPIA is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.7619 GPIA, 82% of the median. (13 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 0.6278 GPIA is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.9331 GPIA, 67% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 0.765 GPIA | 0.765 GPIA | 0.765 GPIA | 1 |
| 2020s | 0.871 GPIA | 0.6278 GPIA | 1.22 GPIA | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 45 Chile 0.6667 GPIA compare
- 46 Bangladesh 0.6384 GPIA compare
- 47 Rwanda 0.6367 GPIA compare
- 49 El Salvador 0.6071 GPIA compare
- 50 Russian Federation 0.6037 GPIA compare
- 51 Lesotho 0.5539 GPIA compare
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 of primary school age, adjusted in South Africa?
- Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in South Africa was 0.6278 GPIA in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 1.22 GPIA in 2021.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6278 GPIA in 2024.
- How does South Africa rank for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted?
- South Africa ranks 48th out of 52 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.9%. 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 of primary school age, adjusted gender parity index (household survey data) (GPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 6 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release