Primary education, teachers in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan: Primary education, teachers was 3.29 million in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
3.29 million
Change on year
up 2.3%
Rank
28th
of 45 groups
All-time high
3.29 million
in 2024
All-time low
807,139
in 1971
Years of data
55
1970–2024

Primary education, teachers in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, 1970–2024

1.0M1.5M2.0M2.5M3.0M3.5M197019972024

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

Analysis

Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan recorded 3.29 million for primary education, teachers in 2024. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.3% on the previous year and up 8.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, primary education, teachers in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan peaked at 3.29 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 807,139, in 1971.

That places Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan 28th out of 45 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

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

Primary education, teachers in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, year by year

Annual values for Primary education, teachers in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, 1970 to 2024.
Year Value Change
1970 825,024
1971 807,139 -2.2%
1972 837,664 +3.8%
1973 834,776 -0.3%
1974 883,813 +5.9%
1975 927,574 +5.0%
1976 988,205 +6.5%
1977 1.04 million +5.0%
1978 1.05 million +1.0%
1979 936,649 -10.7%
1980 1.14 million +21.7%
1981 1.18 million +3.6%
1982 1.23 million +4.4%
1983 1.40 million +13.3%
1984 1.45 million +3.9%
1985 1.51 million +4.2%
1986 1.56 million +3.4%
1987 1.57 million +0.6%
1988 1.62 million +3.2%
1989 1.81 million +11.4%
1990 1.74 million -3.8%
1991 1.82 million +4.6%
1992 1.86 million +2.2%
1993 1.94 million +4.2%
1994 2.00 million +2.9%
1995 2.05 million +2.5%
1996 2.09 million +2.2%
1997 2.19 million +4.8%
1998 2.23 million +1.9%
1999 2.28 million +2.2%
2000 2.33 million +2.3%
2001 2.37 million +1.3%
2002 2.43 million +2.5%
2003 2.46 million +1.5%
2004 2.51 million +1.7%
2005 2.56 million +2.0%
2006 2.60 million +1.7%
2007 2.62 million +0.7%
2008 2.65 million +1.2%
2009 2.67 million +0.7%
2010 2.69 million +0.8%
2011 2.76 million +2.7%
2012 2.91 million +5.3%
2013 2.98 million +2.3%
2014 3.03 million +1.6%
2015 3.05 million +0.8%
2016 3.07 million +0.7%
2017 3.09 million +0.8%
2018 3.17 million +2.3%
2019 3.21 million +1.5%
2020 3.18 million -1.0%
2021 3.18 million -0.1%
2022 3.11 million -2.1%
2023 3.22 million +3.5%
2024 3.29 million +2.3%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 912,710 807,139 1.05 million 10
1980s 1.45 million 1.14 million 1.81 million 10
1990s 2.02 million 1.74 million 2.28 million 10
2000s 2.52 million 2.33 million 2.67 million 10
2010s 3.00 million 2.69 million 3.21 million 10
2020s 3.20 million 3.11 million 3.29 million 5

Countries ranked near Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan

  1. 25 Kenya 281,500 compare
  2. 26 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 281,128 compare
  3. 27 Malaysia 273,792 compare
  4. 28 Italy 250,961 compare
  5. 29 Spain 248,253 compare
  6. 30 Algeria 247,748 compare
  7. 31 Saudi Arabia 244,652 compare

See the full ranking of 249 places →

More education data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan

All data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan →

Frequently asked questions

What is primary education, teachers in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
Primary education, teachers in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan was 3.29 million in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
What is the highest primary education, teachers recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
The highest recorded value was 3.29 million in 2024.
What is the lowest primary education, teachers recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
The lowest recorded value was 807,139 in 1971.
How does Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan rank for primary education, teachers?
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan ranks 28th out of 45 groups with data for 2024.
Is primary education, teachers rising or falling in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
Over the last ten years it is up 8.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan data come from?
The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Primary education, teachers. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Primary education, teachers in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan. Statizoid, drawing on Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Retrieved 08 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/primary-education-teachers/middle-east-north-africa-afghanistan-and-pakistan/

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About this data

Indicator
Primary education, teachers
Source
Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
249 places, 9,469 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

Primary education, teachers refers to the total number of teachers at primary level, including full-time and part-time teachers.