Population of compulsory school age, male in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: Population of compulsory school age, male was 5.18 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Population of compulsory school age, male in Afghanistan, 1998–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for population of compulsory school age, male in Afghanistan is 5.18 million, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
That represents a change of up 2.3% on the previous year and up 19.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population of compulsory school age, male in Afghanistan peaked at 5.18 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1.62 million, in 1998.
Afghanistan ranks 24th of 197 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Population of compulsory school age, male in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 1.62 million | — |
| 1999 | 1.70 million | +5.0% |
| 2000 | 1.78 million | +4.9% |
| 2001 | 1.78 million | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 1.86 million | +4.0% |
| 2003 | 2.03 million | +9.2% |
| 2004 | 2.15 million | +5.9% |
| 2005 | 2.22 million | +3.4% |
| 2006 | 2.34 million | +5.2% |
| 2007 | 2.43 million | +4.1% |
| 2008 | 3.45 million | +41.9% |
| 2009 | 3.61 million | +4.6% |
| 2010 | 3.73 million | +3.3% |
| 2011 | 3.82 million | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 3.98 million | +4.2% |
| 2013 | 4.10 million | +2.9% |
| 2014 | 4.20 million | +2.5% |
| 2015 | 4.32 million | +2.9% |
| 2016 | 4.38 million | +1.3% |
| 2017 | 4.45 million | +1.7% |
| 2018 | 4.54 million | +1.9% |
| 2019 | 4.63 million | +2.0% |
| 2020 | 4.74 million | +2.2% |
| 2021 | 4.86 million | +2.7% |
| 2022 | 4.91 million | +0.9% |
| 2023 | 4.95 million | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 5.06 million | +2.3% |
| 2025 | 5.18 million | +2.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1.66 million | 1.62 million | 1.70 million | 2 |
| 2000s | 2.36 million | 1.78 million | 3.61 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.22 million | 3.73 million | 4.63 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.95 million | 4.74 million | 5.18 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
More education data for Afghanistan
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.16 million (2023)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 5.53 % change on previous year (2018)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 24,220 (2003)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 5.89 % change on previous year (1986)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 430,980 (2020)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 5.48 % change on previous year (2004)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 67,949 (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 95,218 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 115,568 (2020)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 5.48 % change on previous year (2004)
Frequently asked questions
- What is population of compulsory school age, male in Afghanistan?
- Population of compulsory school age, male in Afghanistan was 5.18 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest population of compulsory school age, male recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 5.18 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest population of compulsory school age, male recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.62 million in 1998.
- How does Afghanistan rank for population of compulsory school age, male?
- Afghanistan ranks 24th out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population of compulsory school age, male rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 19.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Population of compulsory school age, male (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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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