School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in SDG: Least Developed Countries
SDG: Least Developed Countries: School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes was 84.81 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
84.81 million
Change on year
up 0.6%
Rank
42nd
of 221 groups
All-time high
84.81 million
in 2024
All-time low
22.18 million
in 1970
Years of data
55
1970–2024
School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in SDG: Least Developed Countries, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
In 2024, school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in SDG: Least Developed Countries stood at 84.81 million. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and up 17.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in SDG: Least Developed Countries peaked at 84.81 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 22.18 million, in 1970.
SDG: Least Developed Countries ranks 42nd of 221 groups on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.
School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in SDG: Least Developed Countries, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 22.18 million | — |
| 1971 | 22.72 million | +2.5% |
| 1972 | 23.28 million | +2.4% |
| 1973 | 23.86 million | +2.5% |
| 1974 | 24.35 million | +2.1% |
| 1975 | 24.94 million | +2.4% |
| 1976 | 25.53 million | +2.4% |
| 1977 | 26.21 million | +2.7% |
| 1978 | 26.53 million | +1.2% |
| 1979 | 27.11 million | +2.2% |
| 1980 | 27.70 million | +2.2% |
| 1981 | 28.43 million | +2.6% |
| 1982 | 29.22 million | +2.8% |
| 1983 | 29.65 million | +1.5% |
| 1984 | 30.55 million | +3.1% |
| 1985 | 31.47 million | +3.0% |
| 1986 | 32.50 million | +3.3% |
| 1987 | 33.33 million | +2.6% |
| 1988 | 34.19 million | +2.6% |
| 1989 | 35.03 million | +2.5% |
| 1990 | 35.97 million | +2.7% |
| 1991 | 36.90 million | +2.6% |
| 1992 | 37.91 million | +2.7% |
| 1993 | 38.93 million | +2.7% |
| 1994 | 40.58 million | +4.2% |
| 1995 | 41.64 million | +2.6% |
| 1996 | 42.67 million | +2.5% |
| 1997 | 44.07 million | +3.3% |
| 1998 | 54.74 million | +24.2% |
| 1999 | 56.01 million | +2.3% |
| 2000 | 57.21 million | +2.2% |
| 2001 | 58.41 million | +2.1% |
| 2002 | 59.66 million | +2.1% |
| 2003 | 60.27 million | +1.0% |
| 2004 | 61.67 million | +2.3% |
| 2005 | 63.07 million | +2.3% |
| 2006 | 64.42 million | +2.1% |
| 2007 | 64.01 million | -0.6% |
| 2008 | 65.13 million | +1.7% |
| 2009 | 66.30 million | +1.8% |
| 2010 | 67.62 million | +2.0% |
| 2011 | 68.93 million | +1.9% |
| 2012 | 70.21 million | +1.9% |
| 2013 | 71.49 million | +1.8% |
| 2014 | 72.42 million | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 73.44 million | +1.4% |
| 2016 | 74.53 million | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 77.02 million | +3.3% |
| 2018 | 78.31 million | +1.7% |
| 2019 | 79.64 million | +1.7% |
| 2020 | 79.68 million | +0.1% |
| 2021 | 81.20 million | +1.9% |
| 2022 | 82.75 million | +1.9% |
| 2023 | 84.34 million | +1.9% |
| 2024 | 84.81 million | +0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 24.67 million | 22.18 million | 27.11 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 31.21 million | 27.70 million | 35.03 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 42.94 million | 35.97 million | 56.01 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 62.02 million | 57.21 million | 66.30 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 73.36 million | 67.62 million | 79.64 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 82.56 million | 79.68 million | 84.81 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near SDG: Least Developed Countries
More education data for SDG: Least Developed Countries
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.32 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 0.8795 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 6.90 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 5.49 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 2.12 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number) -0.1094 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 0.3263 % change on previous year (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), annual growth rate 0.4194 % change on previous year (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), annual growth rate 0.9747 % change on previous year (2024)
- Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general 93.3% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in SDG: Least Developed Countries?
- School age population, pre-primary education, both sexes in SDG: Least Developed Countries was 84.81 million in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes recorded in SDG: Least Developed Countries?
- The highest recorded value was 84.81 million in 2024.
- What is the lowest school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes recorded in SDG: Least Developed Countries?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.18 million in 1970.
- How does SDG: Least Developed Countries rank for school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes?
- SDG: Least Developed Countries ranks 42nd out of 221 groups with data for 2024.
- Is school age population, pre-primary education, both sexes rising or falling in SDG: Least Developed Countries?
- Over the last ten years it is up 17.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this SDG: Least Developed Countries 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
CSV · JSON — 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release