School age population, one year before the official primary entry in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd)

WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd): School age population, one year before the official primary entry was 16.22 million in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
16.22 million
Change on year
down 1.5%
Rank
86th
of 221 groups
All-time high
16.47 million
in 2023
All-time low
6.18 million
in 1970
Years of data
55
1970–2024

School age population, one year before the official primary entry in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd), 1970–2024

05.0M10.0M15.0M197019972024

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.

Analysis

The most recent figure for school age population, one year before the official primary entry in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd) is 16.22 million, measured in 2024.

That represents a change of down 1.5% on the previous year and up 7.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, school age population, one year before the official primary entry in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd) peaked at 16.47 million in 2023 and was at its lowest, 6.18 million, in 1970.

That places WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd) 86th 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, one year before the official primary entry in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd), year by year

Annual values for School age population, one year before the official primary entry age, both sexes (number) in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd), 1970 to 2024.
Year Value Change
1970 6.18 million
1971 6.31 million +2.2%
1972 6.47 million +2.5%
1973 6.64 million +2.6%
1974 6.80 million +2.5%
1975 6.98 million +2.7%
1976 7.19 million +2.9%
1977 7.41 million +3.1%
1978 7.60 million +2.5%
1979 7.80 million +2.6%
1980 8.03 million +3.0%
1981 8.27 million +3.0%
1982 8.51 million +2.9%
1983 8.78 million +3.2%
1984 9.11 million +3.7%
1985 9.50 million +4.3%
1986 9.90 million +4.2%
1987 10.22 million +3.3%
1988 10.60 million +3.7%
1989 10.91 million +2.9%
1990 11.19 million +2.6%
1991 11.41 million +2.0%
1992 11.61 million +1.7%
1993 11.82 million +1.8%
1994 12.03 million +1.8%
1995 12.16 million +1.1%
1996 12.29 million +1.1%
1997 12.35 million +0.5%
1998 12.32 million -0.3%
1999 12.28 million -0.3%
2000 12.18 million -0.8%
2001 12.13 million -0.4%
2002 12.11 million -0.2%
2003 12.24 million +1.1%
2004 12.45 million +1.7%
2005 12.63 million +1.4%
2006 12.80 million +1.3%
2007 12.91 million +0.9%
2008 13.00 million +0.7%
2009 13.12 million +0.9%
2010 13.35 million +1.8%
2011 13.74 million +2.9%
2012 14.17 million +3.1%
2013 14.63 million +3.2%
2014 15.03 million +2.8%
2015 15.38 million +2.3%
2016 15.62 million +1.6%
2017 15.83 million +1.3%
2018 16.10 million +1.7%
2019 16.30 million +1.3%
2020 16.41 million +0.7%
2021 16.44 million +0.2%
2022 16.44 million -0.0%
2023 16.47 million +0.2%
2024 16.22 million -1.5%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 6.94 million 6.18 million 7.80 million 10
1980s 9.38 million 8.03 million 10.91 million 10
1990s 11.95 million 11.19 million 12.35 million 10
2000s 12.56 million 12.11 million 13.12 million 10
2010s 15.01 million 13.35 million 16.30 million 10
2020s 16.40 million 16.22 million 16.47 million 5

Countries ranked near WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd)

  1. 83 Honduras 225,319 compare
  2. 84 Romania 207,531 compare
  3. 85 Jordan 200,986 compare
  4. 86 Tunisia 196,063 compare
  5. 87 Dominican Republic 187,994 compare
  6. 88 Israel 187,477 compare
  7. 89 Netherlands 175,000 compare

See the full ranking of 443 places →

More education data for WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd)

All data for WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd) →

Frequently asked questions

What is school age population, one year before the official primary entry in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd)?
School age population, one year before the official primary entry in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd) was 16.22 million in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest school age population, one year before the official primary entry recorded in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd)?
The highest recorded value was 16.47 million in 2023.
What is the lowest school age population, one year before the official primary entry recorded in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd)?
The lowest recorded value was 6.18 million in 1970.
How does WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd) rank for school age population, one year before the official primary entry?
WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd) ranks 86th out of 221 groups with data for 2024.
Is school age population, one year before the official primary entry rising or falling in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd)?
Over the last ten years it is up 7.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd) 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.

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School age population, one year before the official primary entry in WB: Middle East & North Africa (ida & Ibrd). Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 16 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/school-age-population-one-year-before-the-official-primary-entry-age-both-sexes-number/wb-middle-east-and-north-africa-ida-and-ibrd/

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About this data

Indicator
School age population, one year before the official primary entry age, both sexes (number)
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics)
Coverage
443 places, 20,766 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

February 2026 Data Release