Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Ghana
Ghana: Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both was 31.1% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Ghana, 2000–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Ghana is 31.1%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 26 years on record.
The figure is down 6.3% on the previous year and down 21.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Ghana peaked at 67.9% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 31.1%, in 2025.
That places Ghana 64th out of 206 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Ghana, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 67.9% | — |
| 2001 | 65.2% | -4.0% |
| 2002 | 62.0% | -4.9% |
| 2003 | 58.3% | -6.0% |
| 2004 | 54.4% | -6.7% |
| 2005 | 51.5% | -5.3% |
| 2006 | 48.7% | -5.4% |
| 2007 | 45.9% | -5.7% |
| 2008 | 44.0% | -4.1% |
| 2009 | 43.1% | -2.0% |
| 2010 | 43.2% | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 43.9% | +1.6% |
| 2012 | 44.9% | +2.3% |
| 2013 | 39.5% | -12.0% |
| 2014 | 39.9% | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 39.7% | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 38.1% | -4.0% |
| 2017 | 36.1% | -5.2% |
| 2018 | 34.4% | -4.7% |
| 2019 | 33.9% | -1.5% |
| 2020 | 33.8% | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 38.3% | +13.3% |
| 2022 | 37.5% | -2.1% |
| 2023 | 35.6% | -5.1% |
| 2024 | 33.2% | -6.7% |
| 2025 | 31.1% | -6.3% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 31.1% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 35.0%, 89% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 31.1% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 52.2%, 60% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 54.1% | 43.1% | 67.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 39.4% | 33.9% | 44.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 34.9% | 31.1% | 38.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
- 61 Dominican Republic 31.9% compare
- 61 Vanuatu 31.9% compare
- 63 Trinidad and Tobago 31.7% compare
- 65 Montserrat 30.8% compare
- 66 Tuvalu 30.5% compare
- 67 Bangladesh 30.3% compare
More education data for Ghana
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 174,414 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 39,902 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 949,095 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 913,117 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.33 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.98 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.6567 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1448 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Ghana?
- Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Ghana was 31.1% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 67.9% in 2000.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 31.1% in 2025.
- How does Ghana rank for out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both?
- Ghana ranks 64th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is down 21.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ghana 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, both sexes (modelled data) (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release