Population of the official entrance age to primary education, male in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka: Population of the official entrance age to primary education, male was 169,810 number in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
169,810 number
Change on year
down 0.9%
World rank
69th
of 206 countries
All-time high
197,601 number
in 1988
All-time low
165,032 number
in 2003
Years of data
51
1970–2020

Population of the official entrance age to primary education, male in Sri Lanka, 1970–2020

050.0k100.0k150.0k200.0k197019952020

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.

Analysis

In 2020, population of the official entrance age to primary education, male in Sri Lanka stood at 169,810 number.

The figure is down 0.9% on the previous year and down 4.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, population of the official entrance age to primary education, male in Sri Lanka peaked at 197,601 number in 1988 and was at its lowest, 165,032 number, in 2003.

Sri Lanka ranks 69th of 206 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 51 years of available data.

Population of the official entrance age to primary education, male in Sri Lanka, year by year

Annual values for Population of the official entrance age to primary education, male (number) in Sri Lanka, 1970 to 2020.
Year number Change
1970 170,313 number
1971 172,041 number +1.0%
1972 174,445 number +1.4%
1973 177,041 number +1.5%
1974 179,273 number +1.3%
1975 180,447 number +0.7%
1976 181,091 number +0.4%
1977 180,587 number -0.3%
1978 179,561 number -0.6%
1979 178,687 number -0.5%
1980 178,822 number +0.1%
1981 180,520 number +0.9%
1982 183,628 number +1.7%
1983 187,427 number +2.1%
1984 191,203 number +2.0%
1985 193,927 number +1.4%
1986 195,861 number +1.0%
1987 197,114 number +0.6%
1988 197,601 number +0.2%
1989 197,215 number -0.2%
1990 195,967 number -0.6%
1991 193,852 number -1.1%
1992 190,030 number -2.0%
1993 185,272 number -2.5%
1994 180,380 number -2.6%
1995 176,435 number -2.2%
1996 173,637 number -1.6%
1997 171,642 number -1.1%
1998 169,709 number -1.1%
1999 168,406 number -0.8%
2000 166,130 number -1.4%
2001 165,444 number -0.4%
2002 165,067 number -0.2%
2003 165,032 number -0.0%
2004 165,449 number +0.3%
2005 166,471 number +0.6%
2006 169,062 number +1.6%
2007 172,105 number +1.8%
2008 175,075 number +1.7%
2009 177,281 number +1.3%
2010 177,917 number +0.4%
2011 178,478 number +0.3%
2012 178,561 number +0.0%
2013 178,207 number -0.2%
2014 177,533 number -0.4%
2015 176,717 number -0.5%
2016 175,803 number -0.5%
2017 174,525 number -0.7%
2018 172,986 number -0.9%
2019 171,349 number -0.9%
2020 169,810 number -0.9%

Sri Lanka compared with similar countries

  • Sri Lanka's 169,810 number is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 60,052 number, 2.8× the median. (58 countries reporting)
  • Sri Lanka's 169,810 number is below the median for South Asia, which is 222,194 number, 76% of the median. (6 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 177,349 number 170,313 number 181,091 number 10
1980s 190,332 number 178,822 number 197,601 number 10
1990s 180,533 number 168,406 number 195,967 number 10
2000s 168,712 number 165,032 number 177,281 number 10
2010s 176,208 number 171,349 number 178,561 number 10
2020s 169,810 number 169,810 number 169,810 number 1

Countries ranked near Sri Lanka

  1. 66 Burundi 178,125 number compare
  2. 67 Syrian Arab Republic 176,584 number compare
  3. 68 Benin 172,199 number compare
  4. 70 Australia 168,985 number compare
  5. 71 Korea, Democratic People's Republic of 168,965 number compare
  6. 72 Rwanda 167,893 number compare

See the full ranking of 251 places →

More education data for Sri Lanka

All data for Sri Lanka →

Frequently asked questions

What is population of the official entrance age to primary education, male in Sri Lanka?
Population of the official entrance age to primary education, male in Sri Lanka was 169,810 number in 2020, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest population of the official entrance age to primary education, male recorded in Sri Lanka?
The highest recorded value was 197,601 number in 1988.
What is the lowest population of the official entrance age to primary education, male recorded in Sri Lanka?
The lowest recorded value was 165,032 number in 2003.
How does Sri Lanka rank for population of the official entrance age to primary education, male?
Sri Lanka ranks 69th out of 206 countries with data for 2020.
Is population of the official entrance age to primary education, male rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
Over the last ten years it is down 4.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Population of the official entrance age to primary education, male (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Population of the official entrance age to primary education, male in Sri Lanka. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 15 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/population-of-the-official-entrance-age-to-primary-education-male-number/sri-lanka/

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About this data

Indicator
Population of the official entrance age to primary education, male (number)
Unit
number
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
251 places, 12,277 data points, 1970–2020
Last refreshed

Male population of the age-group theoretically corresponding to the official entrance age to primary education. The official entrance age is the age at which students would enter a given programme or level of education assuming they start at the official entrance age for the lowest level of education, study full-time throughout and progressed through the system without repeating or skipping a grade. The theoretical entrance age to a given programme or level is typically, but not always, the most common entrance age.