Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Jamaica
Jamaica: Share of children in primary school age who are in school was 95.7% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Jamaica, 1820–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of children in primary school age who are in school in Jamaica is 95.7%, measured in 2024.
The figure is up 9.2% on the previous year and up 7.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Jamaica peaked at 100.0% in 1950 and was at its lowest, 6.2%, in 1820.
That places Jamaica 113th out of 209 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
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 Jamaica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 6.2% | — |
| 1825 | 7.5% | +20.5% |
| 1830 | 9.0% | +20.2% |
| 1835 | 10.8% | +19.8% |
| 1840 | 12.8% | +19.3% |
| 1845 | 15.3% | +18.8% |
| 1850 | 18.0% | +18.1% |
| 1855 | 21.2% | +17.5% |
| 1860 | 24.8% | +16.7% |
| 1865 | 28.7% | +15.8% |
| 1870 | 33.0% | +14.9% |
| 1875 | 46.8% | +41.9% |
| 1880 | 60.5% | +29.5% |
| 1885 | 69.6% | +15.0% |
| 1890 | 78.7% | +13.0% |
| 1895 | 79.5% | +1.0% |
| 1900 | 80.3% | +1.0% |
| 1905 | 74.6% | -7.1% |
| 1910 | 68.9% | -7.6% |
| 1915 | 68.7% | -0.3% |
| 1920 | 63.8% | -7.1% |
| 1925 | 79.6% | +24.7% |
| 1930 | 84.1% | +5.7% |
| 1935 | 88.5% | +5.2% |
| 1940 | 90.7% | +2.5% |
| 1945 | 80.4% | -11.3% |
| 1950 | 100.0% | +24.4% |
| 1955 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 85.4% | -14.6% |
| 1965 | 100.0% | +17.2% |
| 1970 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 99.2% | -0.8% |
| 1976 | 97.9% | -1.4% |
| 1977 | 97.4% | -0.5% |
| 1979 | 99.1% | +1.7% |
| 1980 | 98.5% | -0.6% |
| 1981 | 97.9% | -0.7% |
| 1983 | 98.6% | +0.7% |
| 1984 | 96.8% | -1.8% |
| 1985 | 95.3% | -1.5% |
| 1986 | 94.8% | -0.5% |
| 1987 | 95.8% | +1.0% |
| 1988 | 92.4% | -3.6% |
| 1989 | 95.9% | +3.8% |
| 1990 | 95.5% | -0.4% |
| 1991 | 94.4% | -1.1% |
| 1993 | 91.4% | -3.3% |
| 1999 | 88.1% | -3.5% |
| 2000 | 89.1% | +1.1% |
| 2001 | 88.8% | -0.3% |
| 2002 | 87.7% | -1.2% |
| 2003 | 86.9% | -1.0% |
| 2004 | 89.9% | +3.5% |
| 2005 | 89.9% | -0.0% |
| 2007 | 91.5% | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 95.6% | +4.5% |
| 2009 | 99.8% | +4.3% |
| 2010 | 92.7% | -7.1% |
| 2013 | 91.2% | -1.5% |
| 2014 | 89.3% | -2.1% |
| 2015 | 89.5% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 88.9% | -0.7% |
| 2017 | 89.5% | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 89.6% | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 81.6% | -9.0% |
| 2020 | 87.4% | +7.1% |
| 2021 | 85.0% | -2.8% |
| 2022 | 93.3% | +9.7% |
| 2023 | 87.6% | -6.1% |
| 2024 | 95.7% | +9.2% |
Jamaica compared with similar countries
- Jamaica's 95.7% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 96.0%, 100% of the median. (56 countries reporting)
- Jamaica's 95.7% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 95.1%, 1.0× the median. (38 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Jamaica 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1875 | +41.9% | 33.0% | 46.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1820s | 6.8% | 6.2% | 7.5% | 2 |
| 1830s | 9.9% | 9.0% | 10.8% | 2 |
| 1840s | 14.1% | 12.8% | 15.3% | 2 |
| 1850s | 19.6% | 18.0% | 21.2% | 2 |
| 1860s | 26.7% | 24.8% | 28.7% | 2 |
| 1870s | 39.9% | 33.0% | 46.8% | 2 |
| 1880s | 65.1% | 60.5% | 69.6% | 2 |
| 1890s | 79.1% | 78.7% | 79.5% | 2 |
| 1900s | 77.4% | 74.6% | 80.3% | 2 |
| 1910s | 68.8% | 68.7% | 68.9% | 2 |
| 1920s | 71.7% | 63.8% | 79.6% | 2 |
| 1930s | 86.3% | 84.1% | 88.5% | 2 |
| 1940s | 85.5% | 80.4% | 90.7% | 2 |
| 1950s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1960s | 92.7% | 85.4% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 98.7% | 97.4% | 100.0% | 5 |
| 1980s | 96.2% | 92.4% | 98.6% | 9 |
| 1990s | 92.4% | 88.1% | 95.5% | 4 |
| 2000s | 91.0% | 86.9% | 99.8% | 9 |
| 2010s | 89.0% | 81.6% | 92.7% | 8 |
| 2020s | 89.8% | 85.0% | 95.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
- 110 French Polynesia 95.9% compare
- 111 Uganda 95.9% compare
- 112 Tajikistan 95.8% compare
- 114 Costa Rica 95.5% compare
- 115 Belarus 95.5% compare
- 116 Libya 95.5% compare
More education data for Jamaica
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 11,043 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 4,597 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 52,983 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 51,265 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 177,095 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 211,097 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 8.14 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0744 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children in primary school age who are in school in Jamaica?
- Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Jamaica was 95.7% 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 Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 1950.
- What is the lowest share of children in primary school age who are in school recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.2% in 1820.
- How does Jamaica rank for share of children in primary school age who are in school?
- Jamaica ranks 113th out of 209 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children in primary school age who are in school rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Jamaica 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.