School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in OECD members

OECD members: School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes was 55.22 million number in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
55.22 million number
Change on year
up 0.7%
Rank
22nd
of 43 groups
All-time high
60.17 million number
in 1978
All-time low
54.57 million number
in 2011
Years of data
50
1970–2019

School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in OECD members, 1970–2019

020.0M40.0M60.0M197019942019

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.

Analysis

OECD members recorded 55.22 million number for school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in 2019.

That represents a change of up 0.7% on the previous year and down 0.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in OECD members peaked at 60.17 million number in 1978 and was at its lowest, 54.57 million number, in 2011.

That places OECD members 22nd out of 43 groups with data for 2019, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 50 years of available data.

School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in OECD members, year by year

Annual values for School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes (number) in OECD members, 1970 to 2019.
Year number Change
1970 56.26 million number
1971 56.27 million number +0.0%
1972 56.97 million number +1.3%
1973 57.64 million number +1.2%
1974 58.26 million number +1.1%
1975 58.85 million number +1.0%
1976 59.33 million number +0.8%
1977 59.56 million number +0.4%
1978 60.17 million number +1.0%
1979 59.48 million number -1.1%
1980 59.25 million number -0.4%
1981 58.92 million number -0.6%
1982 58.55 million number -0.6%
1983 58.25 million number -0.5%
1984 57.96 million number -0.5%
1985 57.67 million number -0.5%
1986 57.38 million number -0.5%
1987 57.01 million number -0.6%
1988 57.08 million number +0.1%
1989 56.04 million number -1.8%
1990 55.46 million number -1.0%
1991 55.05 million number -0.7%
1992 54.83 million number -0.4%
1993 54.99 million number +0.3%
1994 55.18 million number +0.3%
1995 55.44 million number +0.5%
1996 55.18 million number -0.5%
1997 55.30 million number +0.2%
1998 55.53 million number +0.4%
1999 56.54 million number +1.8%
2000 56.51 million number -0.0%
2001 56.47 million number -0.1%
2002 57.11 million number +1.1%
2003 57.33 million number +0.4%
2004 57.01 million number -0.6%
2005 56.95 million number -0.1%
2006 56.63 million number -0.6%
2007 56.23 million number -0.7%
2008 55.82 million number -0.7%
2009 55.40 million number -0.8%
2010 54.98 million number -0.7%
2011 54.57 million number -0.8%
2012 54.77 million number +0.4%
2013 55.51 million number +1.4%
2014 55.30 million number -0.4%
2015 55.02 million number -0.5%
2016 54.69 million number -0.6%
2017 54.68 million number -0.0%
2018 54.84 million number +0.3%
2019 55.22 million number +0.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 58.28 million number 56.26 million number 60.17 million number 10
1980s 57.81 million number 56.04 million number 59.25 million number 10
1990s 55.35 million number 54.83 million number 56.54 million number 10
2000s 56.55 million number 55.40 million number 57.33 million number 10
2010s 54.96 million number 54.57 million number 55.51 million number 10

Countries ranked near OECD members

  1. 19 Democratic Republic of Congo 4.36 million number compare
  2. 20 Myanmar 3.91 million number compare
  3. 21 France 3.34 million number compare
  4. 22 Colombia 3.12 million number compare
  5. 23 Sudan 3.08 million number compare
  6. 24 Afghanistan 3.01 million number compare
  7. 25 Algeria 2.81 million number compare

See the full ranking of 250 places →

More education data for OECD members

All data for OECD members →

Frequently asked questions

What is school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in OECD members?
School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in OECD members was 55.22 million number in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes recorded in OECD members?
The highest recorded value was 60.17 million number in 1978.
What is the lowest school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes recorded in OECD members?
The lowest recorded value was 54.57 million number in 2011.
How does OECD members rank for school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes?
OECD members ranks 22nd out of 43 groups with data for 2019.
Is school age population, lower secondary education, both sexes rising or falling in OECD members?
Over the last ten years it is down 0.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this OECD members 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.

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School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes in OECD members. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 29 August 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/school-age-population-lower-secondary-education-both-sexes-number/oecd-members/

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About this data

Indicator
School age population, lower secondary education, both sexes (number)
Unit
number
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
250 places, 12,264 data points, 1970–2020
Last refreshed

Population of the age-group theoretically corresponding to lower secondary education as indicated by theoretical entrance age and duration.