Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban in Colombia
Colombia: Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban was 14.7% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban in Colombia, 2002–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban in Colombia is 14.7%, measured in 2023.
The figure is down 4.5% on the previous year and down 18.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban in Colombia peaked at 29.8% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 14.5%, in 2020.
That places Colombia 14th out of 25 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 20 years of available data.
Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban in Colombia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 29.8% | — |
| 2003 | 25.7% | -13.8% |
| 2004 | 27.6% | +7.4% |
| 2005 | 28.3% | +2.6% |
| 2008 | 18.8% | -33.6% |
| 2009 | 18.6% | -1.1% |
| 2010 | 23.7% | +27.3% |
| 2011 | 18.6% | -21.5% |
| 2012 | 18.5% | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 18.1% | -2.2% |
| 2014 | 17.7% | -2.2% |
| 2015 | 19.1% | +7.8% |
| 2016 | 16.6% | -13.0% |
| 2017 | 16.8% | +1.2% |
| 2018 | 16.7% | -0.6% |
| 2019 | 16.7% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 14.5% | -13.2% |
| 2021 | 14.8% | +2.1% |
| 2022 | 15.4% | +4.1% |
| 2023 | 14.7% | -4.5% |
Colombia compared with similar countries
- Colombia's 14.7% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 14.2%, 1.0× the median. (16 countries reporting)
- Colombia's 14.7% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 14.7%, 1.0× the median. (11 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 24.8% | 18.6% | 29.8% | 6 |
| 2010s | 18.2% | 16.6% | 23.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 14.8% | 14.5% | 15.4% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Colombia
- 11 El Salvador 20.1% compare
- 12 Bolivia, Plurinational State of 19.6% compare
- 13 Ecuador 15.3% compare
- 15 Uruguay 14.5% compare
- 16 Costa Rica 13.8% compare
- 17 Paraguay 13.5% compare
More education data for Colombia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 190,940 (2022)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 234,939 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 963,182 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 937,684 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.85 million (2022)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.14 million (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.2 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.08 units per person (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban in Colombia?
- Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban in Colombia was 14.7% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban recorded in Colombia?
- The highest recorded value was 29.8% in 2002.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban recorded in Colombia?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.5% in 2020.
- How does Colombia rank for out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban?
- Colombia ranks 14th out of 25 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, urban rising or falling in Colombia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Colombia 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, urban, poorest quintile, both sexes (household survey data) (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 20 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release