School age population, lower secondary education, female in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa

MDG: Sub-saharan Africa: School age population, lower secondary education, female was 47.70 million in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
47.70 million
Change on year
up 0.8%
Rank
40th
of 221 groups
All-time high
47.70 million
in 2024
All-time low
11.60 million
in 1970
Years of data
55
1970–2024

School age population, lower secondary education, female in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa, 1970–2024

10.0M20.0M30.0M40.0M50.0M197019972024

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.

Analysis

The most recent figure for school age population, lower secondary education, female in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa is 47.70 million, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 32.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, school age population, lower secondary education, female in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa peaked at 47.70 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 11.60 million, in 1970.

That places MDG: Sub-saharan Africa 40th out of 221 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.

School age population, lower secondary education, female in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa, year by year

Annual values for School age population, lower secondary education, female (number) in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa, 1970 to 2024.
Year Value Change
1970 11.60 million
1971 11.90 million +2.6%
1972 12.24 million +2.8%
1973 12.64 million +3.3%
1974 13.02 million +3.0%
1975 13.41 million +3.0%
1976 13.80 million +2.9%
1977 14.20 million +3.0%
1978 14.57 million +2.6%
1979 14.99 million +2.9%
1980 15.42 million +2.9%
1981 15.88 million +3.0%
1982 16.23 million +2.2%
1983 16.70 million +2.9%
1984 17.15 million +2.7%
1985 17.59 million +2.5%
1986 16.34 million -7.1%
1987 16.81 million +2.9%
1988 17.32 million +3.0%
1989 17.57 million +1.5%
1990 18.13 million +3.1%
1991 18.48 million +1.9%
1992 19.02 million +3.0%
1993 19.59 million +3.0%
1994 20.10 million +2.6%
1995 20.75 million +3.2%
1996 21.37 million +3.0%
1997 21.41 million +0.2%
1998 23.48 million +9.7%
1999 24.38 million +3.8%
2000 25.04 million +2.7%
2001 25.72 million +2.7%
2002 26.43 million +2.8%
2003 27.15 million +2.7%
2004 27.88 million +2.7%
2005 28.60 million +2.6%
2006 29.38 million +2.7%
2007 29.89 million +1.7%
2008 30.74 million +2.8%
2009 31.56 million +2.6%
2010 32.36 million +2.6%
2011 33.18 million +2.5%
2012 34.05 million +2.6%
2013 35.15 million +3.2%
2014 36.08 million +2.7%
2015 37.48 million +3.9%
2016 38.56 million +2.9%
2017 39.53 million +2.5%
2018 40.71 million +3.0%
2019 41.95 million +3.0%
2020 43.75 million +4.3%
2021 44.63 million +2.0%
2022 45.79 million +2.6%
2023 47.33 million +3.4%
2024 47.70 million +0.8%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 13.24 million 11.60 million 14.99 million 10
1980s 16.70 million 15.42 million 17.59 million 10
1990s 20.67 million 18.13 million 24.38 million 10
2000s 28.24 million 25.04 million 31.56 million 10
2010s 36.90 million 32.36 million 41.95 million 10
2020s 45.84 million 43.75 million 47.70 million 5

Countries ranked near MDG: Sub-saharan Africa

  1. 37 Mozambique 1.30 million compare
  2. 38 United Kingdom 1.24 million compare
  3. 39 Burkina Faso 1.20 million compare
  4. 40 Ghana 1.16 million compare
  5. 41 Malawi 1.12 million compare
  6. 42 Thailand 1.11 million compare
  7. 43 South Africa 1.08 million compare

See the full ranking of 441 places →

More education data for MDG: Sub-saharan Africa

All data for MDG: Sub-saharan Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is school age population, lower secondary education, female in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
School age population, lower secondary education, female in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa was 47.70 million in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest school age population, lower secondary education, female recorded in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
The highest recorded value was 47.70 million in 2024.
What is the lowest school age population, lower secondary education, female recorded in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 11.60 million in 1970.
How does MDG: Sub-saharan Africa rank for school age population, lower secondary education, female?
MDG: Sub-saharan Africa ranks 40th out of 221 groups with data for 2024.
Is school age population, lower secondary education, female rising or falling in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 32.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this MDG: Sub-saharan Africa data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, lower secondary education, female (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).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

School age population, lower secondary education, female in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 01 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/school-age-population-lower-secondary-education-female-number-2/mdg-sub-saharan-africa/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://education.statizoid.com/stat/school-age-population-lower-secondary-education-female-number-2/mdg-sub-saharan-africa/">School age population, lower secondary education, female in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
School age population, lower secondary education, female (number)
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics)
Coverage
441 places, 20,444 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

February 2026 Data Release