Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Lesotho
Lesotho: Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes was 32.2% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Lesotho, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Lesotho recorded 32.2% for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in 2024.
That represents a change of up 4.8% on the previous year and up 101.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Lesotho peaked at 46.0% in 1999 and was at its lowest, 14.0%, in 2006.
Lesotho ranks 16th of 203 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 53 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 39.2% | — |
| 1971 | 43.2% | +10.2% |
| 1972 | 42.4% | -1.8% |
| 1973 | 41.7% | -1.5% |
| 1974 | 33.4% | -20.0% |
| 1976 | 32.1% | -4.0% |
| 1977 | 30.6% | -4.6% |
| 1978 | 37.0% | +21.0% |
| 1979 | 35.8% | -3.3% |
| 1980 | 35.8% | +0.1% |
| 1981 | 35.9% | +0.3% |
| 1982 | 32.3% | -10.3% |
| 1983 | 33.5% | +4.0% |
| 1984 | 33.5% | -0.1% |
| 1985 | 32.2% | -3.8% |
| 1986 | 33.3% | +3.3% |
| 1987 | 29.7% | -10.8% |
| 1988 | 29.3% | -1.3% |
| 1989 | 30.7% | +4.8% |
| 1990 | 32.5% | +5.7% |
| 1991 | 31.8% | -2.0% |
| 1992 | 32.2% | +1.3% |
| 1993 | 35.1% | +8.9% |
| 1994 | 35.0% | -0.3% |
| 1995 | 36.9% | +5.3% |
| 1996 | 37.0% | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 43.6% | +17.7% |
| 1999 | 46.0% | +5.6% |
| 2000 | 25.5% | -44.6% |
| 2001 | 23.2% | -9.0% |
| 2002 | 20.4% | -11.9% |
| 2003 | 18.0% | -12.0% |
| 2004 | 18.2% | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 16.7% | -8.5% |
| 2006 | 14.0% | -16.0% |
| 2007 | 16.0% | +14.0% |
| 2008 | 15.2% | -4.8% |
| 2009 | 15.9% | +4.5% |
| 2010 | 15.2% | -4.3% |
| 2011 | 14.9% | -2.1% |
| 2012 | 14.8% | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 14.6% | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 15.9% | +9.5% |
| 2015 | 16.7% | +4.5% |
| 2016 | 16.2% | -3.1% |
| 2017 | 14.8% | -8.3% |
| 2018 | 20.2% | +36.4% |
| 2019 | 22.9% | +13.1% |
| 2020 | 24.3% | +6.4% |
| 2021 | 30.3% | +24.8% |
| 2022 | 29.4% | -3.1% |
| 2023 | 30.7% | +4.5% |
| 2024 | 32.2% | +4.8% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 32.2% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 6.9%, 4.7× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 32.2% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 16.9%, 1.9× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Lesotho 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | -44.6% | 46.0% | 25.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 37.3% | 30.6% | 43.2% | 9 |
| 1980s | 32.6% | 29.3% | 35.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 36.7% | 31.8% | 46.0% | 9 |
| 2000s | 18.3% | 14.0% | 25.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 16.6% | 14.6% | 22.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 29.4% | 24.3% | 32.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
- 13 Burkina Faso 34.3% compare
- 14 Mali 34.0% compare
- 15 Kenya 32.9% compare
- 17 Yemen 30.6% compare
- 18 Guinea-Bissau 30.5% compare
- 19 Solomon Islands 30.1% compare
More education data for Lesotho
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 5,672 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 30,627 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 22,924 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 23,698 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 136,497 (2017)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 309,480 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.8093 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1324 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Lesotho?
- Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Lesotho was 32.2% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 46.0% in 1999.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.0% in 2006.
- How does Lesotho rank for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes?
- Lesotho ranks 16th out of 203 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is up 101.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho 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 (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release