School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: All Unicef Countries
UNICEF: All Unicef Countries: School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes was 125.09 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
125.09 million
Change on year
up 1.3%
Rank
6th
of 221 groups
All-time high
125.09 million
in 2024
All-time low
77.46 million
in 1971
Years of data
55
1970–2024
School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: All Unicef Countries, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
UNICEF: All Unicef Countries recorded 125.09 million for school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in 2024. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.3% on the previous year and up 12.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: All Unicef Countries peaked at 125.09 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 77.46 million, in 1971.
That places UNICEF: All Unicef Countries 6th out of 221 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.
School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: All Unicef Countries, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 80.12 million | — |
| 1971 | 77.46 million | -3.3% |
| 1972 | 77.73 million | +0.3% |
| 1973 | 77.82 million | +0.1% |
| 1974 | 87.53 million | +12.5% |
| 1975 | 93.89 million | +7.3% |
| 1976 | 91.81 million | -2.2% |
| 1977 | 92.64 million | +0.9% |
| 1978 | 92.68 million | +0.1% |
| 1979 | 92.06 million | -0.7% |
| 1980 | 96.55 million | +4.9% |
| 1981 | 96.81 million | +0.3% |
| 1982 | 98.17 million | +1.4% |
| 1983 | 97.55 million | -0.6% |
| 1984 | 97.52 million | -0.0% |
| 1985 | 97.54 million | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 96.62 million | -0.9% |
| 1987 | 95.33 million | -1.3% |
| 1988 | 95.39 million | +0.1% |
| 1989 | 94.90 million | -0.5% |
| 1990 | 96.06 million | +1.2% |
| 1991 | 98.05 million | +2.1% |
| 1992 | 99.70 million | +1.7% |
| 1993 | 101.66 million | +2.0% |
| 1994 | 104.50 million | +2.8% |
| 1995 | 103.05 million | -1.4% |
| 1996 | 105.08 million | +2.0% |
| 1997 | 106.80 million | +1.6% |
| 1998 | 109.37 million | +2.4% |
| 1999 | 111.45 million | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 111.15 million | -0.3% |
| 2001 | 112.84 million | +1.5% |
| 2002 | 114.26 million | +1.3% |
| 2003 | 109.45 million | -4.2% |
| 2004 | 108.55 million | -0.8% |
| 2005 | 108.38 million | -0.2% |
| 2006 | 108.28 million | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 108.23 million | -0.0% |
| 2008 | 108.14 million | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 108.24 million | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 108.71 million | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 109.92 million | +1.1% |
| 2012 | 111.35 million | +1.3% |
| 2013 | 111.06 million | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 111.50 million | +0.4% |
| 2015 | 112.21 million | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 113.13 million | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 114.33 million | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 116.42 million | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 118.21 million | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 120.04 million | +1.6% |
| 2021 | 121.14 million | +0.9% |
| 2022 | 122.15 million | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 123.45 million | +1.1% |
| 2024 | 125.09 million | +1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 86.37 million | 77.46 million | 93.89 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 96.64 million | 94.90 million | 98.17 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 103.57 million | 96.06 million | 111.45 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 109.75 million | 108.14 million | 114.26 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 112.68 million | 108.71 million | 118.21 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 122.37 million | 120.04 million | 125.09 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near UNICEF: All Unicef Countries
- 3 Nigeria 6.12 million compare
- 4 Pakistan 6.02 million compare
- 5 Indonesia 4.98 million compare
- 6 United States of America 4.17 million compare
- 7 Bangladesh 3.13 million compare
- 8 Ethiopia 3.04 million compare
- 9 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 2.93 million compare
More education data for UNICEF: All Unicef Countries
- Enrolment in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 569.51 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 0.8422 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 274.67 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth rate 1.48 % change on previous year (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 29.12 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, both sexes (number), annual growth 0.6486 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), annual growth rate 1.84 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth 1.59 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 345.07 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 294.84 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: All Unicef Countries?
- School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in UNICEF: All Unicef Countries was 125.09 million in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes recorded in UNICEF: All Unicef Countries?
- The highest recorded value was 125.09 million in 2024.
- What is the lowest school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes recorded in UNICEF: All Unicef Countries?
- The lowest recorded value was 77.46 million in 1971.
- How does UNICEF: All Unicef Countries rank for school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes?
- UNICEF: All Unicef Countries ranks 6th out of 221 groups with data for 2024.
- Is school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes rising or falling in UNICEF: All Unicef Countries?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this UNICEF: All Unicef Countries data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release