Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in Zambia
Zambia: Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted was 0.8685 GPIA in 2017. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in Zambia, 1972–2017
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.
Analysis
Zambia recorded 0.8685 GPIA for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in 2017. That is the lowest value across all 29 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 27.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in Zambia peaked at 1.42 GPIA in 1972 and was at its lowest, 0.8685 GPIA, in 2017.
Zambia ranks 125th of 180 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 29 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in Zambia, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 1.42 GPIA | — |
| 1976 | 1.37 GPIA | -2.9% |
| 1977 | 1.34 GPIA | -2.3% |
| 1978 | 1.29 GPIA | -3.7% |
| 1979 | 1.25 GPIA | -3.0% |
| 1980 | 1.24 GPIA | -1.3% |
| 1981 | 1.23 GPIA | -0.8% |
| 1982 | 1.23 GPIA | -0.1% |
| 1983 | 1.25 GPIA | +2.0% |
| 1984 | 1.28 GPIA | +2.1% |
| 1986 | 1.26 GPIA | -1.4% |
| 1988 | 1.2 GPIA | -4.5% |
| 1994 | 1.17 GPIA | -2.6% |
| 1995 | 1.15 GPIA | -1.7% |
| 1998 | 1.13 GPIA | -2.2% |
| 1999 | 1.13 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 1.1 GPIA | -2.6% |
| 2001 | 1.07 GPIA | -2.1% |
| 2002 | 1.1 GPIA | +2.0% |
| 2004 | 1.11 GPIA | +1.0% |
| 2005 | 1.07 GPIA | -3.6% |
| 2006 | 0.9386 GPIA | -12.0% |
| 2007 | 1.2 GPIA | +27.5% |
| 2009 | 0.971 GPIA | -18.8% |
| 2010 | 0.9793 GPIA | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 0.9874 GPIA | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 0.8744 GPIA | -11.4% |
| 2013 | 1.02 GPIA | +16.1% |
| 2017 | 0.8685 GPIA | -14.5% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 0.8685 GPIA is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.9813 GPIA, 89% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 0.8685 GPIA is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.9878 GPIA, 88% of the median. (44 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in Zambia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | +27.5% | 0.9386 GPIA | 1.2 GPIA |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.34 GPIA | 1.25 GPIA | 1.42 GPIA | 5 |
| 1980s | 1.24 GPIA | 1.2 GPIA | 1.28 GPIA | 7 |
| 1990s | 1.14 GPIA | 1.13 GPIA | 1.17 GPIA | 4 |
| 2000s | 1.07 GPIA | 0.9386 GPIA | 1.2 GPIA | 8 |
| 2010s | 0.945 GPIA | 0.8685 GPIA | 1.02 GPIA | 5 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
- 122 North Macedonia 0.8762 GPIA compare
- 123 Martinique 0.8726 GPIA compare
- 124 Malaysia 0.8688 GPIA compare
- 126 Colombia 0.8661 GPIA compare
- 127 Slovenia 0.8592 GPIA compare
- 128 Puerto Rico 0.8559 GPIA compare
More education data for Zambia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 42,585 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 169,961 (2013)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.39 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.49 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.55 % change on previous year (2017)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.2106 units per person (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 4.49 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in Zambia?
- Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted in Zambia was 0.8685 GPIA in 2017, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 1.42 GPIA in 1972.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.8685 GPIA in 2017.
- How does Zambia rank for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted?
- Zambia ranks 125th out of 180 countries with data for 2017.
- Is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, adjusted rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 27.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Zambia 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 (GPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 29 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release