Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Gambia
Gambia: Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary was 41.1% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Gambia, 2007–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Gambia recorded 41.1% for out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is down 6.5% on the previous year and down 18.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Gambia peaked at 69.4% in 2007 and was at its lowest, 41.1%, in 2025.
That places Gambia 38th out of 175 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Gambia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 69.4% | — |
| 2010 | 55.3% | -20.4% |
| 2013 | 58.3% | +5.5% |
| 2014 | 51.8% | -11.2% |
| 2015 | 50.5% | -2.6% |
| 2016 | 50.7% | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 48.5% | -4.3% |
| 2018 | 47.3% | -2.4% |
| 2019 | 45.5% | -3.9% |
| 2020 | 45.0% | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 46.3% | +3.0% |
| 2022 | 47.1% | +1.8% |
| 2023 | 46.5% | -1.3% |
| 2024 | 43.9% | -5.5% |
| 2025 | 41.1% | -6.5% |
Gambia compared with similar countries
- Gambia's 41.1% is below the median for low income countries, which is 57.5%, 72% of the median. (14 countries reporting)
- Gambia's 41.1% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 44.5%, 92% of the median. (32 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 69.4% | 69.4% | 69.4% | 1 |
| 2010s | 51.0% | 45.5% | 58.3% | 8 |
| 2020s | 45.0% | 41.1% | 47.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Gambia
- 35 Timor-Leste 43.8% compare
- 36 Honduras 41.8% compare
- 37 Iran, Islamic Republic of 41.1% compare
- 39 Sierra Leone 39.4% compare
- 40 Saudi Arabia 37.3% compare
- 41 Madagascar 37.0% compare
More education data for Gambia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 12,452 (2021)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 16,389 (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 71,238 (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 77,061 (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 369,783 (2021)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 442,901 (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.4 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1569 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Gambia?
- Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Gambia was 41.1% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary recorded in Gambia?
- The highest recorded value was 69.4% in 2007.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary recorded in Gambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 41.1% in 2025.
- How does Gambia rank for out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary?
- Gambia ranks 38th out of 175 countries with data for 2025.
- Is out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary rising or falling in Gambia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Gambia 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, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release