Primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia

Europe & Central Asia: Primary education, pupils was 52.35 million in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
52.35 million
Change on year
down 0.1%
Rank
35th
of 43 groups
All-time high
62.06 million
in 1971
All-time low
48.60 million
in 2010
Years of data
55
1970–2024

Primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia, 1970–2024

020.0M40.0M60.0M197019972024

Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Analysis

Europe & Central Asia recorded 52.35 million for primary education, pupils in 2024.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.1% on the previous year and up 6.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia peaked at 62.06 million in 1971 and was at its lowest, 48.60 million, in 2010.

Europe & Central Asia ranks 35th of 43 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 55 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 59.18 million 54.62 million 62.06 million 10
1980s 57.82 million 56.40 million 59.02 million 10
1990s 56.91 million 56.25 million 57.62 million 10
2000s 51.44 million 48.66 million 54.83 million 10
2010s 50.09 million 48.60 million 52.84 million 10
2020s 52.26 million 52.10 million 52.38 million 5

Countries ranked near Europe & Central Asia

  1. 32 United Kingdom 4.86 million compare
  2. 33 Iraq 4.86 million compare
  3. 34 Côte d'Ivoire 4.82 million compare
  4. 35 Malawi 4.75 million compare
  5. 36 Morocco 4.61 million compare
  6. 37 Argentina 4.58 million compare
  7. 38 Zambia 4.49 million compare

See the full ranking of 251 places →

More education data for Europe & Central Asia

All data for Europe & Central Asia →

Frequently asked questions

What is primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia?
Primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia was 52.35 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?
The highest recorded value was 62.06 million in 1971.
What is the lowest primary education, pupils recorded in Europe & Central Asia?
The lowest recorded value was 48.60 million in 2010.
How does Europe & Central Asia rank for primary education, pupils?
Europe & Central Asia ranks 35th out of 43 groups with data for 2024.
Is primary education, pupils rising or falling in Europe & Central Asia?
Over the last ten years it is up 6.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Europe & Central Asia 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).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia. Statizoid, drawing on Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Retrieved 22 August 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/primary-education-pupils/europe-and-central-asia/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://education.statizoid.com/stat/primary-education-pupils/europe-and-central-asia/">Primary education, pupils in Europe & Central Asia</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Primary education, pupils
Source
Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
251 places, 11,297 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

Primary education pupils is the total number of pupils enrolled at primary level in public and private schools.