School age population, primary education, both sexes in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: School age population, primary education, both sexes was 6.99 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
6.99 million
Change on year
up 2.2%
World rank
22nd
of 222 countries
All-time high
6.99 million
in 2025
All-time low
1.71 million
in 1970
Years of data
56
1970–2025
School age population, primary education, both sexes in Afghanistan, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
In 2025, school age population, primary education, both sexes in Afghanistan stood at 6.99 million. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
The figure is up 2.2% on the previous year and up 20.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, primary education, both sexes in Afghanistan peaked at 6.99 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1.71 million, in 1970.
That places Afghanistan 22nd out of 222 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
School age population, primary education, both sexes in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 1.71 million | — |
| 1971 | 1.76 million | +3.1% |
| 1972 | 1.81 million | +3.0% |
| 1973 | 1.87 million | +3.1% |
| 1974 | 1.93 million | +3.1% |
| 1975 | 1.98 million | +3.0% |
| 1976 | 2.04 million | +2.9% |
| 1977 | 2.10 million | +2.6% |
| 1978 | 2.15 million | +2.6% |
| 1979 | 2.20 million | +2.4% |
| 1980 | 2.19 million | -0.6% |
| 1981 | 2.07 million | -5.4% |
| 1982 | 1.81 million | -12.4% |
| 1983 | 1.79 million | -1.4% |
| 1984 | 1.81 million | +1.5% |
| 1985 | 1.91 million | +5.0% |
| 1986 | 1.92 million | +0.8% |
| 1987 | 1.92 million | -0.2% |
| 1988 | 1.91 million | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 1.95 million | +2.2% |
| 1990 | 2.01 million | +2.8% |
| 1991 | 1.99 million | -1.1% |
| 1992 | 2.05 million | +3.2% |
| 1993 | 2.32 million | +13.0% |
| 1994 | 2.59 million | +11.9% |
| 1995 | 2.75 million | +6.2% |
| 1996 | 2.89 million | +4.9% |
| 1997 | 3.03 million | +4.8% |
| 1998 | 3.17 million | +4.8% |
| 1999 | 3.33 million | +5.0% |
| 2000 | 3.49 million | +4.9% |
| 2001 | 3.49 million | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 3.63 million | +4.0% |
| 2003 | 3.97 million | +9.1% |
| 2004 | 4.20 million | +5.9% |
| 2005 | 4.34 million | +3.3% |
| 2006 | 4.56 million | +5.2% |
| 2007 | 4.75 million | +4.1% |
| 2008 | 4.76 million | +0.3% |
| 2009 | 4.96 million | +4.1% |
| 2010 | 5.10 million | +2.8% |
| 2011 | 5.21 million | +2.2% |
| 2012 | 5.41 million | +3.8% |
| 2013 | 5.55 million | +2.5% |
| 2014 | 5.66 million | +2.1% |
| 2015 | 5.81 million | +2.6% |
| 2016 | 5.87 million | +1.0% |
| 2017 | 5.96 million | +1.6% |
| 2018 | 6.08 million | +2.0% |
| 2019 | 6.21 million | +2.2% |
| 2020 | 6.37 million | +2.5% |
| 2021 | 6.56 million | +3.0% |
| 2022 | 6.63 million | +1.1% |
| 2023 | 6.69 million | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 6.84 million | +2.2% |
| 2025 | 6.99 million | +2.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.96 million | 1.71 million | 2.20 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.93 million | 1.79 million | 2.19 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.61 million | 1.99 million | 3.33 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.22 million | 3.49 million | 4.96 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.69 million | 5.10 million | 6.21 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.68 million | 6.37 million | 6.99 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
More education data for Afghanistan
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 5.48 % change on previous year (2004)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 67,949 (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 95,218 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 115,568 (2020)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 5.48 % change on previous year (2004)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 315,412 (2020)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number) 5.48 % change on previous year (2004)
- Theoretical duration of primary education (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of pre-primary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (pre-primary to post-secondary non) 0.0494 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, primary education, both sexes in Afghanistan?
- School age population, primary education, both sexes in Afghanistan was 6.99 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, primary education, both sexes recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 6.99 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest school age population, primary education, both sexes recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.71 million in 1970.
- How does Afghanistan rank for school age population, primary education, both sexes?
- Afghanistan ranks 22nd out of 222 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, primary education, both sexes rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 20.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, primary education, 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