Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary was 34.7% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
34.7%
Change on year
down 13.0%
World rank
44th
of 179 countries
All-time high
39.9%
in 2021
All-time low
31.9%
in 2016
Years of data
6
2016–2023
Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Papua New Guinea, 2016–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Papua New Guinea stood at 34.7%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 13.0% on the previous year and up 8.6% over ten years.
That places Papua New Guinea 44th out of 179 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 31.9% | — |
| 2018 | 33.6% | +5.3% |
| 2019 | 33.6% | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 35.2% | +4.8% |
| 2021 | 39.9% | +13.3% |
| 2023 | 34.7% | -13.0% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 34.7% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 34.1%, 1.0× the median. (37 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 34.7% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 13.0%, 2.7× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 33.1% | 31.9% | 33.6% | 3 |
| 2020s | 36.6% | 34.7% | 39.9% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
- 41 Sierra Leone 37.2% compare
- 42 Saudi Arabia 35.6% compare
- 43 Liberia 34.8% compare
- 45 British Virgin Islands 34.3% compare
- 46 Madagascar 34.1% compare
- 47 Laos 34.1% compare
More education data for Papua New Guinea
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 14,791 (2016)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 80,915 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 226,545 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 208,353 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 655,030 (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.65 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 10.31 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1593 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Papua New Guinea?
- Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Papua New Guinea was 34.7% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 39.9% in 2021.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 31.9% in 2016.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 44th out of 179 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary entry age, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release