Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe: Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes was 753,573 in 2024. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Zimbabwe, 1999–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
Zimbabwe recorded 753,573 for out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in 2024.
The figure is up 5.6% on the previous year and up 44.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Zimbabwe peaked at 840,909 in 2003 and was at its lowest, 139,039, in 2012.
That places Zimbabwe 28th out of 184 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 18 years of available data.
Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Zimbabwe, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 784,185 | — |
| 2000 | 826,863 | +5.4% |
| 2001 | 814,342 | -1.5% |
| 2002 | 839,351 | +3.1% |
| 2003 | 840,909 | +0.2% |
| 2012 | 139,039 | -83.5% |
| 2013 | 518,588 | +273.0% |
| 2014 | 523,045 | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 301,207 | -42.4% |
| 2016 | 321,876 | +6.9% |
| 2017 | 336,484 | +4.5% |
| 2018 | 366,908 | +9.0% |
| 2019 | 383,167 | +4.4% |
| 2020 | 400,453 | +4.5% |
| 2021 | 706,465 | +76.4% |
| 2022 | 699,061 | -1.0% |
| 2023 | 713,279 | +2.0% |
| 2024 | 753,573 | +5.6% |
Zimbabwe compared with similar countries
- Zimbabwe's 753,573 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 252,390, 3.0× the median. (39 countries reporting)
- Zimbabwe's 753,573 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 520,818, 1.4× the median. (35 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Zimbabwe 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | +273.0% | 139,039 | 518,588 |
| 2012 | -83.5% | 840,909 | 139,039 |
| 2021 | +76.4% | 400,453 | 706,465 |
| 2015 | -42.4% | 523,045 | 301,207 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 784,185 | 784,185 | 784,185 | 1 |
| 2000s | 830,366 | 814,342 | 840,909 | 4 |
| 2010s | 361,289 | 139,039 | 523,045 | 8 |
| 2020s | 654,566 | 400,453 | 753,573 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Zimbabwe
- 25 Côte d'Ivoire 956,711 compare
- 26 Mozambique 944,143 compare
- 27 Iran, Islamic Republic of 845,053 compare
- 29 Guatemala 743,687 compare
- 30 Malawi 711,076 compare
- 31 Brazil 684,930 compare
More education data for Zimbabwe
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 42,585 (2013)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 12,514 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 328,055 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 322,698 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 957,461 (2013)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.94 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.4866 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1767 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Zimbabwe?
- Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes in Zimbabwe was 753,573 in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The highest recorded value was 840,909 in 2003.
- What is the lowest out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The lowest recorded value was 139,039 in 2012.
- How does Zimbabwe rank for out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes?
- Zimbabwe ranks 28th out of 184 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes rising or falling in Zimbabwe?
- Over the last ten years it is up 44.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Zimbabwe data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release