Population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: Population of compulsory school age, both sexes was 19.24 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo, 1998–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
In 2025, population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo stood at 19.24 million. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.4% on the previous year and up 42.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 19.24 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 7.74 million, in 1998.
That places Democratic Republic of Congo 13th out of 197 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 7.74 million | — |
| 1999 | 8.00 million | +3.4% |
| 2000 | 8.28 million | +3.4% |
| 2001 | 8.57 million | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 8.94 million | +4.3% |
| 2003 | 9.30 million | +4.1% |
| 2004 | 9.62 million | +3.4% |
| 2005 | 9.92 million | +3.1% |
| 2006 | 10.24 million | +3.2% |
| 2007 | 10.58 million | +3.3% |
| 2008 | 10.85 million | +2.6% |
| 2009 | 11.15 million | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 11.48 million | +3.0% |
| 2011 | 11.85 million | +3.2% |
| 2012 | 12.22 million | +3.1% |
| 2013 | 12.61 million | +3.2% |
| 2014 | 13.03 million | +3.3% |
| 2015 | 13.49 million | +3.5% |
| 2016 | 13.98 million | +3.7% |
| 2017 | 14.51 million | +3.8% |
| 2018 | 15.08 million | +3.9% |
| 2019 | 15.64 million | +3.7% |
| 2020 | 16.21 million | +3.7% |
| 2021 | 16.80 million | +3.6% |
| 2022 | 17.38 million | +3.5% |
| 2023 | 17.98 million | +3.4% |
| 2024 | 18.61 million | +3.5% |
| 2025 | 19.24 million | +3.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 7.87 million | 7.74 million | 8.00 million | 2 |
| 2000s | 9.75 million | 8.28 million | 11.15 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.39 million | 11.48 million | 15.64 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 17.70 million | 16.21 million | 19.24 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
More education data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,021 tertiary education (2022)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 561,172 (2023)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0495 % change on previous year (2022)
- Theoretical duration of secondary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (pre-primary to post-secondary non) 0.0494 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of pre-primary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of lower secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Population of compulsory school age, both sexes in Democratic Republic of Congo was 19.24 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest population of compulsory school age, both sexes recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 19.24 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest population of compulsory school age, both sexes recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.74 million in 1998.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for population of compulsory school age, both sexes?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 13th out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population of compulsory school age, both sexes rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is up 42.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Population of compulsory school age, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release