Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Zambia
Zambia: Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes was 9.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Zambia, 2000–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Zambia stood at 9.6%. That is the lowest value across all 26 years on record.
The figure is down 4.0% on the previous year and down 33.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Zambia peaked at 31.9% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 9.6%, in 2025.
Zambia ranks 65th of 206 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
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 Zambia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 31.9% | — |
| 2001 | 28.0% | -12.2% |
| 2002 | 23.9% | -14.6% |
| 2003 | 20.1% | -15.9% |
| 2004 | 17.0% | -15.4% |
| 2005 | 15.1% | -11.2% |
| 2006 | 14.1% | -6.6% |
| 2007 | 13.7% | -2.8% |
| 2008 | 13.5% | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 13.3% | -1.5% |
| 2010 | 13.3% | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 13.5% | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 14.0% | +3.7% |
| 2013 | 14.5% | +3.6% |
| 2014 | 14.6% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 14.4% | -1.4% |
| 2016 | 14.0% | -2.8% |
| 2017 | 13.5% | -3.6% |
| 2018 | 13.0% | -3.7% |
| 2019 | 12.5% | -3.8% |
| 2020 | 11.8% | -5.6% |
| 2021 | 11.3% | -4.2% |
| 2022 | 10.8% | -4.4% |
| 2023 | 10.3% | -4.6% |
| 2024 | 10.0% | -2.9% |
| 2025 | 9.6% | -4.0% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 9.6% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 9.6%, 1.0× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 9.6% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 16.5%, 58% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 19.1% | 13.3% | 31.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.7% | 12.5% | 14.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 10.6% | 9.6% | 11.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
- 62 Sierra Leone 10.3% compare
- 63 Jamaica 10.2% compare
- 64 Philippines 9.8% compare
- 65 Kiribati 9.6% compare
- 67 Malaysia 9.5% compare
- 68 Dominican Republic 9.1% 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, both sexes in Zambia?
- Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Zambia was 9.6% 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 Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 31.9% in 2000.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.6% in 2025.
- How does Zambia rank for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes?
- Zambia ranks 65th 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 Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 33.3%. 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, both sexes (modelled data) (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release