School age population, early childhood educational development in UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa
UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa: School age population, early childhood educational development was 34.08 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
School age population, early childhood educational development in UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa, 1998–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school age population, early childhood educational development in UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa is 34.08 million, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of up 1.3% on the previous year and up 4.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, early childhood educational development in UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa peaked at 34.51 million in 2021 and was at its lowest, 23.43 million, in 1998.
That places UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa 30th out of 187 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 17 years of available data.
School age population, early childhood educational development in UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 23.43 million | — |
| 1999 | 24.21 million | +3.3% |
| 2000 | 24.65 million | +1.8% |
| 2001 | 24.88 million | +1.0% |
| 2002 | 24.41 million | -1.9% |
| 2003 | 25.06 million | +2.7% |
| 2004 | 24.74 million | -1.3% |
| 2015 | 32.54 million | +31.5% |
| 2016 | 33.95 million | +4.3% |
| 2017 | 34.25 million | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 34.37 million | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 34.44 million | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 34.48 million | +0.1% |
| 2021 | 34.51 million | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 33.56 million | -2.7% |
| 2023 | 33.64 million | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 34.08 million | +1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 23.82 million | 23.43 million | 24.21 million | 2 |
| 2000s | 24.75 million | 24.41 million | 25.06 million | 5 |
| 2010s | 33.91 million | 32.54 million | 34.44 million | 5 |
| 2020s | 34.05 million | 33.56 million | 34.51 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa
- 27 Australia 898,793 compare
- 28 Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of 826,570 compare
- 29 Kazakhstan 819,679 compare
- 30 Haiti 738,175 compare
- 31 Republic of Korea 730,554 compare
- 32 Chile 706,673 compare
- 33 Korea, Democratic People's Republic of 686,093 compare
More education data for UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 1.59 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 39.14 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 1.62 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 42.42 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 26.38 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 2.54 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 4.35 % change on previous year (2021)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.60 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth rate 0.7869 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, early childhood educational development in UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa?
- School age population, early childhood educational development in UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa was 34.08 million in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, early childhood educational development recorded in UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 34.51 million in 2021.
- What is the lowest school age population, early childhood educational development recorded in UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 23.43 million in 1998.
- How does UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa rank for school age population, early childhood educational development?
- UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa ranks 30th out of 187 groups with data for 2024.
- Is school age population, early childhood educational development rising or falling in UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this UNICEF: Sub-saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, early childhood educational development programmes, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release