School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in South Asia
South Asia: School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes was 35.16 million number in 2019. ▲ Rising
Latest (2019)
35.16 million number
Change on year
down 0.1%
Rank
10th
of 45 groups
All-time high
35.21 million number
in 2018
All-time low
17.59 million number
in 1970
Years of data
50
1970–2019
School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in South Asia, 1970–2019
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in South Asia is 35.16 million number, measured in 2019.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.1% on the previous year and up 2.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in South Asia peaked at 35.21 million number in 2018 and was at its lowest, 17.59 million number, in 1970.
That places South Asia 10th out of 45 groups with data for 2019, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 50 years of available data.
School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in South Asia, year by year
| Year | number | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 17.59 million number | — |
| 1971 | 17.99 million number | +2.3% |
| 1972 | 18.42 million number | +2.4% |
| 1973 | 18.86 million number | +2.4% |
| 1974 | 19.30 million number | +2.3% |
| 1975 | 19.69 million number | +2.0% |
| 1976 | 20.03 million number | +1.7% |
| 1977 | 20.41 million number | +1.9% |
| 1978 | 20.82 million number | +2.0% |
| 1979 | 21.24 million number | +2.0% |
| 1980 | 21.66 million number | +2.0% |
| 1981 | 22.07 million number | +1.9% |
| 1982 | 22.48 million number | +1.9% |
| 1983 | 22.98 million number | +2.2% |
| 1984 | 23.50 million number | +2.3% |
| 1985 | 24.02 million number | +2.2% |
| 1986 | 24.48 million number | +1.9% |
| 1987 | 25.00 million number | +2.1% |
| 1988 | 25.56 million number | +2.2% |
| 1989 | 26.15 million number | +2.3% |
| 1990 | 26.80 million number | +2.5% |
| 1991 | 27.50 million number | +2.6% |
| 1992 | 28.21 million number | +2.6% |
| 1993 | 28.93 million number | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 29.61 million number | +2.3% |
| 1995 | 30.16 million number | +1.9% |
| 1996 | 30.57 million number | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 31.00 million number | +1.4% |
| 1998 | 31.41 million number | +1.3% |
| 1999 | 31.79 million number | +1.2% |
| 2000 | 32.10 million number | +1.0% |
| 2001 | 32.34 million number | +0.8% |
| 2002 | 32.59 million number | +0.8% |
| 2003 | 32.86 million number | +0.8% |
| 2004 | 33.09 million number | +0.7% |
| 2005 | 33.34 million number | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 33.60 million number | +0.8% |
| 2007 | 33.86 million number | +0.8% |
| 2008 | 34.11 million number | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 34.34 million number | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 34.53 million number | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 34.68 million number | +0.4% |
| 2012 | 34.82 million number | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 34.94 million number | +0.4% |
| 2014 | 35.03 million number | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 35.10 million number | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 35.16 million number | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 35.20 million number | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 35.21 million number | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 35.16 million number | -0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 19.44 million number | 17.59 million number | 21.24 million number | 10 |
| 1980s | 23.79 million number | 21.66 million number | 26.15 million number | 10 |
| 1990s | 29.60 million number | 26.80 million number | 31.79 million number | 10 |
| 2000s | 33.22 million number | 32.10 million number | 34.34 million number | 10 |
| 2010s | 34.98 million number | 34.53 million number | 35.21 million number | 10 |
Countries ranked near South Asia
- 7 Brazil 3.33 million number compare
- 8 Bangladesh 2.98 million number compare
- 9 Ethiopia 2.73 million number compare
- 10 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 2.31 million number compare
- 11 Mexico 2.22 million number compare
- 12 Philippines 2.18 million number compare
- 13 Egypt 1.90 million number compare
More education data for South Asia
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 4.5 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 5.84 million (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 24.6% (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 68.1% (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0959 units per person (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 160.82 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 152.88 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in South Asia?
- School age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes in South Asia was 35.16 million number in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes recorded in South Asia?
- The highest recorded value was 35.21 million number in 2018.
- What is the lowest school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes recorded in South Asia?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.59 million number in 1970.
- How does South Asia rank for school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes?
- South Asia ranks 10th out of 45 groups with data for 2019.
- Is school age population, last grade of primary education, both sexes rising or falling in South Asia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Asia 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 — 50 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Population of the age-group theoretically corresponding to the last grade of primary school as indicated by theoretical entrance age and duration.