School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in Nigeria
Nigeria: School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes was 6.42 million in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
6.42 million
Change on year
down 0.3%
World rank
9th
of 222 countries
All-time high
11.21 million
in 1998
All-time low
3.67 million
in 1999
Years of data
56
1970–2025
School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in Nigeria, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
In 2025, school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in Nigeria stood at 6.42 million.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.3% on the previous year and up 8.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in Nigeria peaked at 11.21 million in 1998 and was at its lowest, 3.67 million, in 1999.
Nigeria ranks 9th of 222 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 56 years of available data.
School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 5.04 million | — |
| 1971 | 5.18 million | +2.9% |
| 1972 | 5.34 million | +3.0% |
| 1973 | 5.50 million | +3.1% |
| 1974 | 5.68 million | +3.2% |
| 1975 | 5.89 million | +3.6% |
| 1976 | 6.11 million | +3.7% |
| 1977 | 6.35 million | +4.0% |
| 1978 | 6.62 million | +4.2% |
| 1979 | 6.92 million | +4.5% |
| 1980 | 7.22 million | +4.4% |
| 1981 | 7.52 million | +4.2% |
| 1982 | 7.82 million | +3.9% |
| 1983 | 8.09 million | +3.5% |
| 1984 | 8.27 million | +2.3% |
| 1985 | 8.47 million | +2.4% |
| 1986 | 8.67 million | +2.4% |
| 1987 | 8.89 million | +2.5% |
| 1988 | 9.07 million | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 9.23 million | +1.7% |
| 1990 | 9.35 million | +1.3% |
| 1991 | 9.49 million | +1.5% |
| 1992 | 9.66 million | +1.8% |
| 1993 | 9.89 million | +2.4% |
| 1994 | 10.14 million | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 10.39 million | +2.5% |
| 1996 | 10.64 million | +2.4% |
| 1997 | 10.91 million | +2.6% |
| 1998 | 11.21 million | +2.7% |
| 1999 | 3.67 million | -67.2% |
| 2000 | 3.78 million | +2.8% |
| 2001 | 3.90 million | +3.3% |
| 2002 | 4.00 million | +2.6% |
| 2003 | 4.10 million | +2.4% |
| 2004 | 4.21 million | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 4.37 million | +3.9% |
| 2006 | 4.57 million | +4.5% |
| 2007 | 4.72 million | +3.5% |
| 2008 | 4.87 million | +3.1% |
| 2009 | 5.03 million | +3.1% |
| 2010 | 5.17 million | +2.8% |
| 2011 | 5.33 million | +3.1% |
| 2012 | 5.48 million | +2.8% |
| 2013 | 5.62 million | +2.6% |
| 2014 | 5.79 million | +3.0% |
| 2015 | 5.93 million | +2.4% |
| 2016 | 6.06 million | +2.2% |
| 2017 | 6.20 million | +2.2% |
| 2018 | 6.28 million | +1.4% |
| 2019 | 6.36 million | +1.3% |
| 2020 | 6.46 million | +1.5% |
| 2021 | 6.48 million | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 6.46 million | -0.3% |
| 2023 | 6.45 million | -0.2% |
| 2024 | 6.44 million | -0.2% |
| 2025 | 6.42 million | -0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.86 million | 5.04 million | 6.92 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 8.32 million | 7.22 million | 9.23 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 9.54 million | 3.67 million | 11.21 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.35 million | 3.78 million | 5.03 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.82 million | 5.17 million | 6.36 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.45 million | 6.42 million | 6.48 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More education data for Nigeria
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of secondary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,021 tertiary education (2022)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0497 % change on previous year (2014)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 913,305 (2021)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 1 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 5 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 56.4% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 40.5% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in Nigeria?
- School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in Nigeria was 6.42 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 11.21 million in 1998.
- What is the lowest school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.67 million in 1999.
- How does Nigeria rank for school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes?
- Nigeria ranks 9th out of 222 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release