Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Nepal
Nepal: Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary was 16.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Nepal, 2011–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Nepal recorded 16.0% for out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in 2024.
The figure is down 4.9% on the previous year and up 19.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Nepal peaked at 30.8% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 13.4%, in 2014.
That places Nepal 82nd out of 175 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 11 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Nepal, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 21.3% | — |
| 2013 | 18.0% | -15.3% |
| 2014 | 13.4% | -26.0% |
| 2015 | 16.7% | +25.4% |
| 2016 | 14.3% | -14.7% |
| 2017 | 13.9% | -2.5% |
| 2020 | 13.5% | -3.5% |
| 2021 | 23.6% | +75.7% |
| 2022 | 30.8% | +30.3% |
| 2023 | 16.8% | -45.5% |
| 2024 | 16.0% | -4.9% |
Nepal compared with similar countries
- Nepal's 16.0% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 36.0%, 44% of the median. (36 countries reporting)
- Nepal's 16.0% is below the median for South Asia, which is 22.7%, 70% of the median. (5 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 16.3% | 13.4% | 21.3% | 6 |
| 2020s | 20.1% | 13.5% | 30.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Nepal
- 79 Montenegro 16.4% compare
- 80 Saint Lucia 16.3% compare
- 81 Azerbaijan 16.3% compare
- 83 Guatemala 15.7% compare
- 84 Nicaragua 15.3% compare
- 85 Suriname 15.0% compare
More education data for Nepal
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 124,257 (2025)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 263,796 (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 752,326 (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 609,324 (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.67 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.57 million (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.31 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1204 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Nepal?
- Out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary in Nepal was 16.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary recorded in Nepal?
- The highest recorded value was 30.8% in 2022.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary recorded in Nepal?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.4% in 2014.
- How does Nepal rank for out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary?
- Nepal ranks 82nd out of 175 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school rate for children one year before the official primary rising or falling in Nepal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 19.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nepal 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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About this data
February 2026 Data Release