Share of children in primary school age who are in school in United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: Share of children in primary school age who are in school was 100.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in United Arab Emirates, 1978–2024
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 United Arab Emirates is 100.0%, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and up 0.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children in primary school age who are in school in United Arab Emirates peaked at 100.0% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 73.0%, in 1981.
United Arab Emirates ranks 1st of 209 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in United Arab Emirates, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1978 | 79.5% | — |
| 1980 | 76.4% | -3.9% |
| 1981 | 73.0% | -4.4% |
| 1982 | 80.3% | +9.9% |
| 1983 | 76.1% | -5.2% |
| 1984 | 75.1% | -1.2% |
| 1985 | 73.5% | -2.2% |
| 1986 | 73.2% | -0.5% |
| 1987 | 82.0% | +12.1% |
| 1988 | 84.3% | +2.7% |
| 1989 | 88.4% | +4.9% |
| 1990 | 92.4% | +4.5% |
| 1991 | 93.9% | +1.7% |
| 1992 | 92.0% | -2.0% |
| 1993 | 89.7% | -2.5% |
| 1994 | 89.0% | -0.8% |
| 1995 | 90.5% | +1.7% |
| 1996 | 88.0% | -2.8% |
| 1997 | 85.1% | -3.3% |
| 1998 | 90.0% | +5.7% |
| 1999 | 92.2% | +2.4% |
| 2000 | 98.6% | +7.0% |
| 2001 | 94.8% | -3.9% |
| 2002 | 95.1% | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 92.3% | -3.0% |
| 2004 | 92.5% | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 91.8% | -0.7% |
| 2006 | 92.4% | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 99.1% | +7.3% |
| 2019 | 99.8% | +0.7% |
| 2020 | 99.9% | +0.1% |
| 2021 | 99.7% | -0.2% |
| 2022 | 100.0% | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 99.8% | -0.2% |
| 2024 | 100.0% | +0.2% |
United Arab Emirates compared with similar countries
- United Arab Emirates's 100.0% is above the median for high income countries, which is 98.2%, 1.0× the median. (74 countries reporting)
- United Arab Emirates's 100.0% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 95.4%, 1.0× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 79.5% | 79.5% | 79.5% | 1 |
| 1980s | 78.2% | 73.0% | 88.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 90.3% | 85.1% | 93.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 93.9% | 91.8% | 98.6% | 7 |
| 2010s | 99.4% | 99.1% | 99.8% | 2 |
| 2020s | 99.9% | 99.7% | 100.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near United Arab Emirates
More education data for United Arab Emirates
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 106,178 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 305 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 119,159 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 125,307 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 894,302 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 586,477 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 5.74 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0534 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children in primary school age who are in school in United Arab Emirates?
- Share of children in primary school age who are in school in United Arab Emirates was 100.0% 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 United Arab Emirates?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 2022.
- What is the lowest share of children in primary school age who are in school recorded in United Arab Emirates?
- The lowest recorded value was 73.0% in 1981.
- How does United Arab Emirates rank for share of children in primary school age who are in school?
- United Arab Emirates ranks 1st out of 209 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children in primary school age who are in school rising or falling in United Arab Emirates?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Arab Emirates 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.