School age population, one year before the official primary entry in Botswana
Botswana: School age population, one year before the official primary entry was 27,565 in 2025. ▲ Rising
School age population, one year before the official primary entry in Botswana, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
Botswana recorded 27,565 for school age population, one year before the official primary entry in 2025. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.0% on the previous year and up 7.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, one year before the official primary entry in Botswana peaked at 27,565 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 9,848, in 1970.
That places Botswana 132nd 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 primary entry in Botswana, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 9,848 | — |
| 1971 | 9,965 | +1.2% |
| 1972 | 10,232 | +2.7% |
| 1973 | 10,795 | +5.5% |
| 1974 | 11,195 | +3.7% |
| 1975 | 11,629 | +3.9% |
| 1976 | 12,103 | +4.1% |
| 1977 | 12,386 | +2.3% |
| 1978 | 12,961 | +4.6% |
| 1979 | 13,951 | +7.6% |
| 1980 | 14,849 | +6.4% |
| 1981 | 14,677 | -1.2% |
| 1982 | 15,388 | +4.8% |
| 1983 | 16,027 | +4.2% |
| 1984 | 16,582 | +3.5% |
| 1985 | 17,651 | +6.4% |
| 1986 | 18,880 | +7.0% |
| 1987 | 19,308 | +2.3% |
| 1988 | 19,687 | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 19,885 | +1.0% |
| 1990 | 20,072 | +0.9% |
| 1991 | 20,417 | +1.7% |
| 1992 | 20,830 | +2.0% |
| 1993 | 21,127 | +1.4% |
| 1994 | 21,072 | -0.3% |
| 1995 | 20,629 | -2.1% |
| 1996 | 20,647 | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 20,724 | +0.4% |
| 1998 | 20,940 | +1.0% |
| 1999 | 21,188 | +1.2% |
| 2000 | 21,275 | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 20,826 | -2.1% |
| 2002 | 20,368 | -2.2% |
| 2003 | 20,208 | -0.8% |
| 2004 | 20,498 | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 20,907 | +2.0% |
| 2006 | 21,503 | +2.9% |
| 2007 | 21,920 | +1.9% |
| 2008 | 22,143 | +1.0% |
| 2009 | 22,374 | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 22,746 | +1.7% |
| 2011 | 23,545 | +3.5% |
| 2012 | 24,417 | +3.7% |
| 2013 | 25,053 | +2.6% |
| 2014 | 25,421 | +1.5% |
| 2015 | 25,708 | +1.1% |
| 2016 | 25,890 | +0.7% |
| 2017 | 25,715 | -0.7% |
| 2018 | 25,713 | -0.0% |
| 2019 | 25,537 | -0.7% |
| 2020 | 25,672 | +0.5% |
| 2021 | 26,078 | +1.6% |
| 2022 | 26,406 | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 26,831 | +1.6% |
| 2024 | 27,028 | +0.7% |
| 2025 | 27,565 | +2.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 11,506 | 9,848 | 13,951 | 10 |
| 1980s | 17,293 | 14,677 | 19,885 | 10 |
| 1990s | 20,765 | 20,072 | 21,188 | 10 |
| 2000s | 21,202 | 20,208 | 22,374 | 10 |
| 2010s | 24,974 | 22,746 | 25,890 | 10 |
| 2020s | 26,597 | 25,672 | 27,565 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Botswana
More education data for Botswana
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 16,622 (2022)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 64.0% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 32.0% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 13 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 109.27 (2022)
- School enrollment, primary 109.3% (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, one year before the official primary entry in Botswana?
- School age population, one year before the official primary entry in Botswana was 27,565 in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, one year before the official primary entry recorded in Botswana?
- The highest recorded value was 27,565 in 2025.
- What is the lowest school age population, one year before the official primary entry recorded in Botswana?
- The lowest recorded value was 9,848 in 1970.
- How does Botswana rank for school age population, one year before the official primary entry?
- Botswana ranks 132nd out of 222 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, one year before the official primary entry rising or falling in Botswana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Botswana 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, female (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release