Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Latin America & Caribbean
Latin America & Caribbean: Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes was 2.8% in 2019. ◆ Volatile
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Latin America & Caribbean, 1970–2019
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Latin America & Caribbean recorded 2.8% for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in 2019.
That represents a change of down 3.8% on the previous year and up 15.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Latin America & Caribbean peaked at 16.5% in 1970 and was at its lowest, 2.3%, in 2007.
Latin America & Caribbean ranks 34th of 45 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Latin America & Caribbean, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 16.5% | — |
| 1971 | 16.1% | -2.2% |
| 1972 | 15.6% | -3.2% |
| 1973 | 14.8% | -5.2% |
| 1974 | 14.2% | -4.0% |
| 1975 | 14.0% | -1.3% |
| 1976 | 13.2% | -5.3% |
| 1977 | 12.3% | -7.1% |
| 1978 | 11.7% | -4.6% |
| 1979 | 10.1% | -13.5% |
| 1980 | 9.7% | -4.2% |
| 1981 | 8.6% | -11.1% |
| 1982 | 8.5% | -1.7% |
| 1983 | 8.5% | -0.1% |
| 1984 | 8.7% | +2.0% |
| 1985 | 8.2% | -5.0% |
| 1986 | 8.5% | +3.0% |
| 1987 | 8.4% | -0.8% |
| 1988 | 8.8% | +4.2% |
| 1989 | 9.6% | +8.9% |
| 1990 | 9.1% | -4.9% |
| 1991 | 8.8% | -3.5% |
| 1992 | 8.0% | -8.9% |
| 1993 | 7.7% | -4.1% |
| 1994 | 8.2% | +6.7% |
| 1995 | 8.3% | +1.1% |
| 1996 | 7.8% | -5.9% |
| 1997 | 8.5% | +9.4% |
| 1998 | 5.5% | -35.2% |
| 1999 | 4.2% | -23.1% |
| 2000 | 3.6% | -14.2% |
| 2001 | 3.5% | -2.5% |
| 2002 | 3.5% | -2.1% |
| 2003 | 3.3% | -5.3% |
| 2004 | 3.2% | -1.6% |
| 2005 | 2.7% | -15.6% |
| 2006 | 3.1% | +14.4% |
| 2007 | 2.3% | -26.3% |
| 2008 | 2.3% | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 2.5% | +6.2% |
| 2010 | 2.7% | +11.1% |
| 2011 | 2.8% | +4.2% |
| 2012 | 3.0% | +3.8% |
| 2013 | 3.0% | +2.0% |
| 2014 | 3.3% | +11.0% |
| 2015 | 3.3% | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 3.3% | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 3.1% | -4.6% |
| 2018 | 2.9% | -5.8% |
| 2019 | 2.8% | -3.8% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Latin America & Caribbean 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | -35.2% | 8.5% | 5.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 13.8% | 10.1% | 16.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 8.7% | 8.2% | 9.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.6% | 4.2% | 9.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.0% | 2.3% | 3.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.0% | 2.7% | 3.3% | 10 |
Countries ranked near Latin America & Caribbean
More education data for Latin America & Caribbean
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 3.34 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 63.30 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 61.44 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.1923 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0928 units per person (2024)
- Population ages 15-64 67.7% (2025)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 22.1% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Latin America & Caribbean?
- Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes in Latin America & Caribbean was 2.8% in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes recorded in Latin America & Caribbean?
- The highest recorded value was 16.5% in 1970.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes recorded in Latin America & Caribbean?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.3% in 2007.
- How does Latin America & Caribbean rank for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes?
- Latin America & Caribbean ranks 34th out of 45 groups with data for 2019.
- Is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, both sexes rising or falling in Latin America & Caribbean?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Latin America & Caribbean 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
The number of students of the official age for primary education is subtracted from the total population of the same age. The result is expressed as a percentage of the population of the official age for primary education. For more information, consult the UNESCO Institute of Statistics website: http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/