Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries): Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male was 16.5% in 2019. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), 1975–2019
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) recorded 16.5% for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of down 2.4% on the previous year and down 14.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) peaked at 50.9% in 1975 and was at its lowest, 16.5%, in 2019.
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) ranks 6th of 45 groups on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 45 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 50.9% | — |
| 1976 | 50.1% | -1.5% |
| 1977 | 48.3% | -3.6% |
| 1978 | 46.4% | -3.9% |
| 1979 | 43.8% | -5.6% |
| 1980 | 41.7% | -4.8% |
| 1981 | 39.9% | -4.4% |
| 1982 | 38.7% | -2.9% |
| 1983 | 38.3% | -1.1% |
| 1984 | 38.9% | +1.6% |
| 1985 | 39.9% | +2.6% |
| 1986 | 41.5% | +3.9% |
| 1987 | 42.4% | +2.3% |
| 1988 | 43.3% | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 42.4% | -2.0% |
| 1990 | 43.1% | +1.6% |
| 1991 | 42.4% | -1.6% |
| 1992 | 42.6% | +0.6% |
| 1993 | 42.3% | -0.9% |
| 1994 | 41.9% | -0.9% |
| 1995 | 40.5% | -3.4% |
| 1996 | 41.3% | +2.1% |
| 1997 | 38.8% | -6.2% |
| 1998 | 38.2% | -1.6% |
| 1999 | 37.9% | -0.8% |
| 2000 | 35.4% | -6.4% |
| 2001 | 33.4% | -5.7% |
| 2002 | 31.5% | -5.6% |
| 2003 | 29.2% | -7.4% |
| 2004 | 27.5% | -5.8% |
| 2005 | 25.3% | -7.9% |
| 2006 | 23.7% | -6.4% |
| 2007 | 20.5% | -13.7% |
| 2008 | 19.8% | -3.0% |
| 2009 | 19.4% | -2.4% |
| 2010 | 19.8% | +2.3% |
| 2011 | 18.6% | -6.2% |
| 2012 | 18.6% | -0.0% |
| 2013 | 17.8% | -4.4% |
| 2014 | 17.6% | -1.1% |
| 2015 | 17.5% | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 17.2% | -1.9% |
| 2017 | 16.9% | -1.7% |
| 2018 | 16.9% | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 16.5% | -2.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 47.9% | 43.8% | 50.9% | 5 |
| 1980s | 40.7% | 38.3% | 43.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 40.9% | 37.9% | 43.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 26.6% | 19.4% | 35.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 17.7% | 16.5% | 19.8% | 10 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
More education data for Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 81.43 million (2024)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 5.14 million (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 56.4% (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1526 units per person (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 196.80 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.9738 % change on previous year (2024)
- Population ages 0-14 40.4% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) was 16.5% in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The highest recorded value was 50.9% in 1975.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The lowest recorded value was 16.5% in 2019.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) rank for out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) ranks 6th out of 45 groups with data for 2019.
- Is out-of-school rate for children of primary school age, male rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Over the last ten years it is down 14.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) 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, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
The number of male students of the official age for primary education is subtracted from the total male population of the same age. The result is expressed as a percentage of the male population of the official age for primary education. For more information, consult the UNESCO Institute of Statistics website: http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/