School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries
UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries: School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes was 33.41 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
33.41 million
Change on year
up 1.4%
Rank
124th
of 221 groups
All-time high
33.41 million
in 2024
All-time low
13.13 million
in 1971
Years of data
55
1970–2024
School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries is 33.41 million, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.4% on the previous year and up 35.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries peaked at 33.41 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 13.13 million, in 1971.
That places UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries 124th out of 221 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.
School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 13.23 million | — |
| 1971 | 13.13 million | -0.7% |
| 1972 | 13.84 million | +5.4% |
| 1973 | 14.17 million | +2.4% |
| 1974 | 14.54 million | +2.6% |
| 1975 | 14.96 million | +2.8% |
| 1976 | 15.32 million | +2.4% |
| 1977 | 15.66 million | +2.2% |
| 1978 | 16.02 million | +2.3% |
| 1979 | 16.39 million | +2.3% |
| 1980 | 16.77 million | +2.3% |
| 1981 | 17.15 million | +2.3% |
| 1982 | 17.54 million | +2.2% |
| 1983 | 17.89 million | +2.0% |
| 1984 | 18.25 million | +2.0% |
| 1985 | 18.64 million | +2.1% |
| 1986 | 19.04 million | +2.2% |
| 1987 | 19.53 million | +2.5% |
| 1988 | 20.08 million | +2.9% |
| 1989 | 20.09 million | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 20.85 million | +3.8% |
| 1991 | 20.73 million | -0.6% |
| 1992 | 21.44 million | +3.4% |
| 1993 | 22.13 million | +3.2% |
| 1994 | 22.83 million | +3.2% |
| 1995 | 23.50 million | +2.9% |
| 1996 | 24.15 million | +2.7% |
| 1997 | 24.65 million | +2.1% |
| 1998 | 25.03 million | +1.5% |
| 1999 | 25.34 million | +1.3% |
| 2000 | 25.57 million | +0.9% |
| 2001 | 25.63 million | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 25.74 million | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 26.70 million | +3.8% |
| 2004 | 26.59 million | -0.4% |
| 2005 | 26.42 million | -0.7% |
| 2006 | 26.17 million | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 26.62 million | +1.7% |
| 2008 | 26.39 million | -0.9% |
| 2009 | 26.19 million | -0.7% |
| 2010 | 26.12 million | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 26.19 million | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 26.38 million | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 25.44 million | -3.5% |
| 2014 | 24.71 million | -2.9% |
| 2015 | 25.00 million | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 26.53 million | +6.1% |
| 2017 | 27.05 million | +2.0% |
| 2018 | 27.70 million | +2.4% |
| 2019 | 28.41 million | +2.6% |
| 2020 | 30.41 million | +7.0% |
| 2021 | 31.29 million | +2.9% |
| 2022 | 32.16 million | +2.8% |
| 2023 | 32.96 million | +2.5% |
| 2024 | 33.41 million | +1.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 14.73 million | 13.13 million | 16.39 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 18.50 million | 16.77 million | 20.09 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 23.07 million | 20.73 million | 25.34 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 26.20 million | 25.57 million | 26.70 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.35 million | 24.71 million | 28.41 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 32.05 million | 30.41 million | 33.41 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries
More education data for UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 17.93 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth rate 2.81 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 22.79 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 2.18 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 24.28 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.77 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 7.22 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual -0.3301 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 8.84 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 5.99 % change on previous year (2024)
All data for UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries →
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries?
- School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries was 33.41 million in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes recorded in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries?
- The highest recorded value was 33.41 million in 2024.
- What is the lowest school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes recorded in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.13 million in 1971.
- How does UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries rank for school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes?
- UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries ranks 124th out of 221 groups with data for 2024.
- Is school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes rising or falling in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries?
- Over the last ten years it is up 35.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa Programme Countries data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, lower secondary 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