Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Barbados
Barbados: Share of children in primary school age who are in school was 82.4% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Barbados, 1820–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Barbados recorded 82.4% for share of children in primary school age who are in school in 2024.
The figure is down 3.6% on the previous year and down 13.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Barbados peaked at 100.0% in 1975 and was at its lowest, 9.5%, in 1820.
That places Barbados 177th out of 209 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 70 years of available data.
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Barbados, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 9.5% | — |
| 1825 | 11.2% | +18.6% |
| 1830 | 13.3% | +18.0% |
| 1835 | 15.6% | +17.6% |
| 1840 | 18.2% | +17.1% |
| 1845 | 21.2% | +16.4% |
| 1850 | 24.6% | +15.7% |
| 1855 | 28.3% | +15.0% |
| 1860 | 37.6% | +33.1% |
| 1865 | 36.9% | -1.9% |
| 1870 | 42.8% | +16.0% |
| 1875 | 35.5% | -16.9% |
| 1880 | 38.1% | +7.2% |
| 1885 | 34.4% | -9.8% |
| 1890 | 43.0% | +25.3% |
| 1895 | 42.4% | -1.5% |
| 1900 | 71.6% | +68.9% |
| 1905 | 73.9% | +3.2% |
| 1910 | 82.1% | +11.1% |
| 1915 | 66.9% | -18.5% |
| 1920 | 54.8% | -18.0% |
| 1925 | 63.0% | +14.9% |
| 1930 | 65.4% | +3.8% |
| 1935 | 70.6% | +7.9% |
| 1940 | 81.0% | +14.9% |
| 1945 | 86.6% | +6.9% |
| 1950 | 68.8% | -20.6% |
| 1955 | 69.0% | +0.3% |
| 1960 | 96.3% | +39.7% |
| 1965 | 98.1% | +1.9% |
| 1970 | 91.0% | -7.3% |
| 1971 | 87.9% | -3.4% |
| 1972 | 88.8% | +1.0% |
| 1973 | 87.3% | -1.7% |
| 1975 | 100.0% | +14.5% |
| 1976 | 88.4% | -11.6% |
| 1977 | 91.8% | +3.9% |
| 1978 | 95.3% | +3.7% |
| 1979 | 97.0% | +1.8% |
| 1980 | 96.0% | -1.0% |
| 1981 | 98.5% | +2.6% |
| 1982 | 99.5% | +1.1% |
| 1983 | 97.8% | -1.7% |
| 1989 | 98.1% | +0.2% |
| 1990 | 95.6% | -2.5% |
| 1992 | 90.2% | -5.6% |
| 1999 | 99.4% | +10.1% |
| 2000 | 99.6% | +0.2% |
| 2001 | 99.5% | -0.1% |
| 2002 | 99.0% | -0.5% |
| 2003 | 99.0% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 99.4% | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 97.4% | -2.0% |
| 2006 | 98.1% | +0.8% |
| 2007 | 98.0% | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 98.1% | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 96.6% | -1.5% |
| 2010 | 98.2% | +1.7% |
| 2011 | 98.0% | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 94.7% | -3.3% |
| 2015 | 95.3% | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 96.1% | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 93.2% | -3.0% |
| 2018 | 93.6% | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 93.7% | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 92.3% | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 90.7% | -1.8% |
| 2022 | 87.9% | -3.0% |
| 2023 | 85.5% | -2.7% |
| 2024 | 82.4% | -3.6% |
Barbados compared with similar countries
- Barbados's 82.4% is below the median for high income countries, which is 98.2%, 84% of the median. (74 countries reporting)
- Barbados's 82.4% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 95.1%, 87% of the median. (38 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Barbados changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | +68.9% | 42.4% | 71.6% |
| 1960 | +39.7% | 69.0% | 96.3% |
| 1860 | +33.1% | 28.3% | 37.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1820s | 10.4% | 9.5% | 11.2% | 2 |
| 1830s | 14.4% | 13.3% | 15.6% | 2 |
| 1840s | 19.7% | 18.2% | 21.2% | 2 |
| 1850s | 26.4% | 24.6% | 28.3% | 2 |
| 1860s | 37.2% | 36.9% | 37.6% | 2 |
| 1870s | 39.2% | 35.5% | 42.8% | 2 |
| 1880s | 36.2% | 34.4% | 38.1% | 2 |
| 1890s | 42.7% | 42.4% | 43.0% | 2 |
| 1900s | 72.8% | 71.6% | 73.9% | 2 |
| 1910s | 74.5% | 66.9% | 82.1% | 2 |
| 1920s | 58.9% | 54.8% | 63.0% | 2 |
| 1930s | 68.0% | 65.4% | 70.6% | 2 |
| 1940s | 83.8% | 81.0% | 86.6% | 2 |
| 1950s | 68.9% | 68.8% | 69.0% | 2 |
| 1960s | 97.2% | 96.3% | 98.1% | 2 |
| 1970s | 91.9% | 87.3% | 100.0% | 9 |
| 1980s | 98.0% | 96.0% | 99.5% | 5 |
| 1990s | 95.1% | 90.2% | 99.4% | 3 |
| 2000s | 98.5% | 96.6% | 99.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 95.3% | 93.2% | 98.2% | 8 |
| 2020s | 87.8% | 82.4% | 92.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Barbados
More education data for Barbados
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1,244 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 279 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 2,255 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 2,277 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 18,457 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 16,314 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -5.2 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0578 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children in primary school age who are in school in Barbados?
- Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Barbados was 82.4% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children in primary school age who are in school recorded in Barbados?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 1975.
- What is the lowest share of children in primary school age who are in school recorded in Barbados?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.5% in 1820.
- How does Barbados rank for share of children in primary school age who are in school?
- Barbados ranks 177th out of 209 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children in primary school age who are in school rising or falling in Barbados?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Barbados data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children in primary school age who are in school. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 70 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of children of primary school age (typically 6–11 years) who are enrolled in primary education.