Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted in South Africa
South Africa: Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted was 0.7421 GPIA in 2023. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted in South Africa, 1994–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 0.7421 GPIA for out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 42.8% on the previous year and down 36.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted in South Africa peaked at 1.16 GPIA in 2015 and was at its lowest, 0.3058 GPIA, in 2017.
South Africa ranks 131st of 180 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted in South Africa, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 0.526 GPIA | — |
| 1999 | 0.9636 GPIA | +83.2% |
| 2000 | 1.01 GPIA | +4.8% |
| 2001 | 0.9868 GPIA | -2.3% |
| 2002 | 0.9903 GPIA | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 0.9725 GPIA | -1.8% |
| 2004 | 0.9611 GPIA | -1.2% |
| 2005 | 0.9654 GPIA | +0.4% |
| 2015 | 1.16 GPIA | +20.3% |
| 2017 | 0.3058 GPIA | -73.7% |
| 2018 | 0.8766 GPIA | +186.7% |
| 2019 | 0.9004 GPIA | +2.7% |
| 2020 | 0.7963 GPIA | -11.6% |
| 2021 | 0.5197 GPIA | -34.7% |
| 2023 | 0.7421 GPIA | +42.8% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 0.7421 GPIA is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.8368 GPIA, 89% of the median. (51 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 0.7421 GPIA is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.9885 GPIA, 75% of the median. (35 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted in South Africa 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | +186.7% | 0.3058 GPIA | 0.8766 GPIA |
| 1999 | +83.2% | 0.526 GPIA | 0.9636 GPIA |
| 2017 | -73.7% | 1.16 GPIA | 0.3058 GPIA |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.7448 GPIA | 0.526 GPIA | 0.9636 GPIA | 2 |
| 2000s | 0.981 GPIA | 0.9611 GPIA | 1.01 GPIA | 6 |
| 2010s | 0.8111 GPIA | 0.3058 GPIA | 1.16 GPIA | 4 |
| 2020s | 0.686 GPIA | 0.5197 GPIA | 0.7963 GPIA | 3 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 128 New Zealand 0.7585 GPIA compare
- 129 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.755 GPIA compare
- 130 Sierra Leone 0.7541 GPIA compare
- 132 Ecuador 0.741 GPIA compare
- 133 Malta 0.7385 GPIA compare
- 134 Armenia 0.7371 GPIA compare
More education data for South Africa
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 181,739 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 339,638 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 410,708 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 407,696 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.50 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.52 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.119 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted in South Africa?
- Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted in South Africa was 0.7421 GPIA in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 1.16 GPIA in 2015.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3058 GPIA in 2017.
- How does South Africa rank for out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted?
- South Africa ranks 131st out of 180 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 36.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, adjusted gender parity index (GPIA). 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