Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Tunisia
Tunisia: Share of children in primary school age who are in school was 98.9% in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Tunisia, 1820–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Tunisia stood at 98.9%.
That represents a change of up 0.5% on the previous year and down 0.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Tunisia peaked at 99.2% in 2013 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1820.
Tunisia ranks 54th of 209 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Tunisia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 0.0% | — |
| 1825 | 0.0% | +0.0% |
| 1830 | 0.0% | +0.0% |
| 1835 | 0.0% | +100.0% |
| 1840 | 0.0% | +0.0% |
| 1845 | 0.0% | +50.0% |
| 1850 | 0.0% | +33.3% |
| 1855 | 0.1% | +50.0% |
| 1860 | 0.1% | +33.3% |
| 1865 | 0.1% | +37.5% |
| 1870 | 0.2% | +45.5% |
| 1875 | 0.2% | +37.5% |
| 1880 | 0.3% | +36.4% |
| 1885 | 0.4% | +36.7% |
| 1890 | 0.6% | +39.0% |
| 1895 | 0.8% | +38.6% |
| 1900 | 1.1% | +38.0% |
| 1905 | 1.5% | +37.6% |
| 1910 | 2.1% | +37.3% |
| 1915 | 2.8% | +36.9% |
| 1920 | 3.9% | +36.9% |
| 1925 | 5.3% | +36.3% |
| 1930 | 7.1% | +35.6% |
| 1935 | 9.6% | +34.6% |
| 1940 | 12.8% | +33.4% |
| 1945 | 16.9% | +31.9% |
| 1950 | 21.9% | +30.0% |
| 1955 | 30.8% | +40.1% |
| 1960 | 50.2% | +63.1% |
| 1965 | 69.2% | +37.9% |
| 1970 | 76.0% | +9.9% |
| 1971 | 79.5% | +4.6% |
| 1975 | 73.5% | -7.6% |
| 1978 | 74.1% | +0.8% |
| 1979 | 76.0% | +2.6% |
| 1980 | 78.5% | +3.3% |
| 1981 | 80.5% | +2.6% |
| 1982 | 83.0% | +3.0% |
| 1983 | 85.9% | +3.5% |
| 1984 | 88.7% | +3.3% |
| 1985 | 89.1% | +0.4% |
| 1986 | 89.8% | +0.7% |
| 1987 | 90.1% | +0.4% |
| 1988 | 90.0% | -0.1% |
| 1989 | 90.9% | +1.1% |
| 1990 | 91.0% | +0.1% |
| 1991 | 92.1% | +1.3% |
| 1992 | 92.4% | +0.3% |
| 1993 | 93.4% | +1.0% |
| 1994 | 93.7% | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 94.7% | +1.0% |
| 1996 | 94.5% | -0.3% |
| 1997 | 94.2% | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 94.6% | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 95.2% | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 95.9% | +0.8% |
| 2002 | 98.3% | +2.5% |
| 2003 | 98.9% | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 99.1% | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 97.2% | -1.9% |
| 2006 | 97.0% | -0.3% |
| 2007 | 95.7% | -1.3% |
| 2008 | 95.6% | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 95.8% | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 96.7% | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 96.8% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 98.9% | +2.2% |
| 2013 | 99.2% | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 99.1% | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 99.1% | -0.0% |
| 2016 | 99.0% | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 98.9% | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 98.9% | -0.0% |
| 2020 | 98.2% | -0.7% |
| 2021 | 98.3% | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 98.4% | +0.1% |
| 2023 | 98.9% | +0.5% |
Tunisia compared with similar countries
- Tunisia's 98.9% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 93.7%, 1.1× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Tunisia's 98.9% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 95.4%, 1.0× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Tunisia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1835 | +100.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| 1960 | +63.1% | 30.8% | 50.2% |
| 1845 | +50.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| 1855 | +50.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% |
| 1870 | +45.5% | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| 1955 | +40.1% | 21.9% | 30.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1820s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1830s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1840s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1850s | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 2 |
| 1860s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 2 |
| 1870s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 2 |
| 1880s | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.4% | 2 |
| 1890s | 0.7% | 0.6% | 0.8% | 2 |
| 1900s | 1.3% | 1.1% | 1.5% | 2 |
| 1910s | 2.4% | 2.1% | 2.8% | 2 |
| 1920s | 4.6% | 3.9% | 5.3% | 2 |
| 1930s | 8.4% | 7.1% | 9.6% | 2 |
| 1940s | 14.9% | 12.8% | 16.9% | 2 |
| 1950s | 26.4% | 21.9% | 30.8% | 2 |
| 1960s | 59.7% | 50.2% | 69.2% | 2 |
| 1970s | 75.8% | 73.5% | 79.5% | 5 |
| 1980s | 86.6% | 78.5% | 90.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 93.4% | 91.0% | 94.7% | 9 |
| 2000s | 96.9% | 95.2% | 99.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 98.5% | 96.7% | 99.2% | 9 |
| 2020s | 98.5% | 98.2% | 98.9% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Tunisia
More education data for Tunisia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 89,644 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 88,316 (2021)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 128,467 (2016)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 122,346 (2016)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.05 million (2016)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.34 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.24 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1096 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children in primary school age who are in school in Tunisia?
- Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Tunisia was 98.9% in 2023, 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 Tunisia?
- The highest recorded value was 99.2% in 2013.
- What is the lowest share of children in primary school age who are in school recorded in Tunisia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1820.
- How does Tunisia rank for share of children in primary school age who are in school?
- Tunisia ranks 54th out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of children in primary school age who are in school rising or falling in Tunisia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Tunisia 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.
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About this data
Share of children of primary school age (typically 6–11 years) who are enrolled in primary education.