Primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)
Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income): Primary education, pupils was 15.66 million in 2024. ▼ Falling
Primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), 1970–2024
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) is 15.66 million, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of down 0.2% on the previous year and up 10.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) peaked at 17.73 million in 1988 and was at its lowest, 13.88 million, in 2013.
Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) ranks 40th of 45 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 55 years of available data.
Primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 16.82 million | — |
| 1971 | 15.61 million | -7.2% |
| 1972 | 15.56 million | -0.3% |
| 1973 | 15.52 million | -0.2% |
| 1974 | 15.44 million | -0.5% |
| 1975 | 15.33 million | -0.7% |
| 1976 | 15.40 million | +0.4% |
| 1977 | 15.34 million | -0.3% |
| 1978 | 15.35 million | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 15.56 million | +1.4% |
| 1980 | 16.68 million | +7.2% |
| 1981 | 14.40 million | -13.7% |
| 1982 | 16.13 million | +12.0% |
| 1983 | 16.37 million | +1.4% |
| 1984 | 16.91 million | +3.3% |
| 1985 | 17.00 million | +0.5% |
| 1986 | 15.97 million | -6.0% |
| 1987 | 17.08 million | +7.0% |
| 1988 | 17.73 million | +3.8% |
| 1989 | 16.07 million | -9.3% |
| 1990 | 16.80 million | +4.5% |
| 1991 | 16.93 million | +0.8% |
| 1992 | 16.94 million | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 16.86 million | -0.4% |
| 1994 | 16.89 million | +0.2% |
| 1995 | 16.47 million | -2.5% |
| 1996 | 17.31 million | +5.1% |
| 1997 | 17.34 million | +0.2% |
| 1998 | 17.45 million | +0.6% |
| 1999 | 17.36 million | -0.5% |
| 2000 | 17.03 million | -1.9% |
| 2001 | 16.99 million | -0.3% |
| 2002 | 16.80 million | -1.1% |
| 2003 | 16.27 million | -3.2% |
| 2004 | 16.11 million | -1.0% |
| 2005 | 16.01 million | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 15.56 million | -2.8% |
| 2007 | 15.27 million | -1.8% |
| 2008 | 15.04 million | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 14.72 million | -2.1% |
| 2010 | 14.69 million | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 14.67 million | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 14.57 million | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 13.88 million | -4.7% |
| 2014 | 14.18 million | +2.1% |
| 2015 | 14.16 million | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 14.48 million | +2.2% |
| 2017 | 14.51 million | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 14.95 million | +3.1% |
| 2019 | 15.34 million | +2.6% |
| 2020 | 15.48 million | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 15.60 million | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 15.68 million | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 15.69 million | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 15.66 million | -0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 15.59 million | 15.33 million | 16.82 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 16.43 million | 14.40 million | 17.73 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 17.04 million | 16.47 million | 17.45 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 15.98 million | 14.72 million | 17.03 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.54 million | 13.88 million | 15.34 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.63 million | 15.48 million | 15.69 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)
More education data for Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 906,553 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 28.09 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 15.66 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.1746 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 22.7% (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 65.7% (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0626 units per person (2024)
All data for Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) →
Frequently asked questions
- What is primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
- Primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) was 15.66 million in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest primary education, pupils recorded in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
- The highest recorded value was 17.73 million in 1988.
- What is the lowest primary education, pupils recorded in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.88 million in 2013.
- How does Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) rank for primary education, pupils?
- Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) ranks 40th out of 45 groups with data for 2024.
- Is primary education, pupils rising or falling in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Primary education, pupils. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Primary education pupils is the total number of pupils enrolled at primary level in public and private schools.