Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Liberia
Liberia: Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes was 35.5% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Liberia, 2000–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Liberia recorded 35.5% for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.8% on the previous year and up 86.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Liberia peaked at 54.1% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 18.9%, in 2014.
That places Liberia 13th out of 206 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Liberia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 54.1% | — |
| 2001 | 52.6% | -2.8% |
| 2002 | 50.9% | -3.2% |
| 2003 | 49.1% | -3.5% |
| 2004 | 46.9% | -4.5% |
| 2005 | 44.5% | -5.1% |
| 2006 | 41.4% | -7.0% |
| 2007 | 37.4% | -9.7% |
| 2008 | 33.2% | -11.2% |
| 2009 | 29.3% | -11.7% |
| 2010 | 25.8% | -11.9% |
| 2011 | 22.9% | -11.2% |
| 2012 | 20.7% | -9.6% |
| 2013 | 19.4% | -6.3% |
| 2014 | 18.9% | -2.6% |
| 2015 | 19.0% | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 19.6% | +3.2% |
| 2017 | 20.7% | +5.6% |
| 2018 | 22.7% | +9.7% |
| 2019 | 25.6% | +12.8% |
| 2020 | 28.7% | +12.1% |
| 2021 | 31.4% | +9.4% |
| 2022 | 33.8% | +7.6% |
| 2023 | 35.4% | +4.7% |
| 2024 | 35.8% | +1.1% |
| 2025 | 35.5% | -0.8% |
Liberia compared with similar countries
- Liberia's 35.5% is above the median for low income countries, which is 25.4%, 1.4× the median. (24 countries reporting)
- Liberia's 35.5% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 16.5%, 2.2× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 43.9% | 29.3% | 54.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 21.5% | 18.9% | 25.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 33.4% | 28.7% | 35.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Liberia
- 10 Burkina Faso 36.9% compare
- 11 Mauritania 35.9% compare
- 12 Niger 35.7% compare
- 14 Angola 33.0% compare
- 15 Mozambique 31.9% compare
- 16 Senegal 30.6% compare
More education data for Liberia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 17,857 (2020)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 14,815 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 123,519 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 123,876 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 274,573 (2020)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 569,741 (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.417 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.106 units per person (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Liberia?
- Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Liberia was 35.5% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes recorded in Liberia?
- The highest recorded value was 54.1% in 2000.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes recorded in Liberia?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.9% in 2014.
- How does Liberia rank for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes?
- Liberia ranks 13th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes rising or falling in Liberia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 86.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Liberia 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, both sexes (modelled data) (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release