School age population, one year before the official … both sexes in Lesotho
Lesotho: School age population, one year before the official … both sexes was 53,577 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
53,577
Change on year
down 2.1%
World rank
133rd
of 222 countries
All-time high
57,811
in 1993
All-time low
29,437
in 1970
Years of data
56
1970–2025
School age population, one year before the official primary entry in Lesotho, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school age population, one year before the official primary entry in Lesotho is 53,577, measured in 2025.
The figure is down 2.1% on the previous year and up 3.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, one year before the official primary entry in Lesotho peaked at 57,811 in 1993 and was at its lowest, 29,437, in 1970.
That places Lesotho 133rd out of 222 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
School age population, one year before the official … both sexes in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 29,437 | — |
| 1971 | 30,222 | +2.7% |
| 1972 | 30,967 | +2.5% |
| 1973 | 31,781 | +2.6% |
| 1974 | 32,559 | +2.4% |
| 1975 | 33,403 | +2.6% |
| 1976 | 34,387 | +2.9% |
| 1977 | 35,458 | +3.1% |
| 1978 | 36,741 | +3.6% |
| 1979 | 38,102 | +3.7% |
| 1980 | 40,004 | +5.0% |
| 1981 | 42,061 | +5.1% |
| 1982 | 44,096 | +4.8% |
| 1983 | 45,750 | +3.8% |
| 1984 | 47,277 | +3.3% |
| 1985 | 48,710 | +3.0% |
| 1986 | 49,978 | +2.6% |
| 1987 | 50,346 | +0.7% |
| 1988 | 51,720 | +2.7% |
| 1989 | 53,023 | +2.5% |
| 1990 | 53,946 | +1.7% |
| 1991 | 54,878 | +1.7% |
| 1992 | 55,752 | +1.6% |
| 1993 | 57,811 | +3.7% |
| 1994 | 57,590 | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 57,015 | -1.0% |
| 1996 | 56,182 | -1.5% |
| 1997 | 55,458 | -1.3% |
| 1998 | 54,117 | -2.4% |
| 1999 | 52,374 | -3.2% |
| 2000 | 51,196 | -2.2% |
| 2001 | 50,721 | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 50,652 | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 50,375 | -0.5% |
| 2004 | 48,507 | -3.7% |
| 2005 | 46,901 | -3.3% |
| 2006 | 46,207 | -1.5% |
| 2007 | 47,555 | +2.9% |
| 2008 | 49,611 | +4.3% |
| 2009 | 49,784 | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 48,821 | -1.9% |
| 2011 | 48,523 | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 48,992 | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 50,976 | +4.0% |
| 2014 | 51,832 | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 51,940 | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 52,239 | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 54,836 | +5.0% |
| 2018 | 55,219 | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 55,875 | +1.2% |
| 2020 | 55,688 | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 55,874 | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 56,235 | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 55,703 | -0.9% |
| 2024 | 54,749 | -1.7% |
| 2025 | 53,577 | -2.1% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 53,577 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 260,576, 21% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 53,577 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 420,719, 13% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 33,306 | 29,437 | 38,102 | 10 |
| 1980s | 47,296 | 40,004 | 53,023 | 10 |
| 1990s | 55,512 | 52,374 | 57,811 | 10 |
| 2000s | 49,151 | 46,207 | 51,196 | 10 |
| 2010s | 51,925 | 48,523 | 55,875 | 10 |
| 2020s | 55,304 | 53,577 | 56,235 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
- 130 Guinea-Bissau 57,592 compare
- 131 Costa Rica 56,894 compare
- 132 Botswana 55,372 compare
- 134 Finland 53,069 compare
- 135 Georgia 51,239 compare
- 136 Equatorial Guinea 48,454 compare
More education data for Lesotho
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 5,672 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 30,627 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 22,924 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 23,698 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 136,497 (2017)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 309,480 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.8093 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1324 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, one year before the official primary entry in Lesotho?
- School age population, one year before the official primary entry in Lesotho was 53,577 in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, one year before the official primary entry recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 57,811 in 1993.
- What is the lowest school age population, one year before the official primary entry recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 29,437 in 1970.
- How does Lesotho rank for school age population, one year before the official primary entry?
- Lesotho ranks 133rd out of 222 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, one year before the official primary entry rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, one year before the official primary entry age, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 56 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release