School age population, primary education, female in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: School age population, primary education, female was 3.42 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
3.42 million
Change on year
up 2.3%
World rank
23rd
of 222 countries
All-time high
3.42 million
in 2025
All-time low
843,034
in 1970
Years of data
56
1970–2025
School age population, primary education, female in Afghanistan, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school age population, primary education, female in Afghanistan is 3.42 million, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
The figure is up 2.3% on the previous year and up 20.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, primary education, female in Afghanistan peaked at 3.42 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 843,034, in 1970.
Afghanistan ranks 23rd of 222 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
School age population, primary education, female in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 843,034 | — |
| 1971 | 868,702 | +3.0% |
| 1972 | 894,119 | +2.9% |
| 1973 | 921,198 | +3.0% |
| 1974 | 949,703 | +3.1% |
| 1975 | 978,328 | +3.0% |
| 1976 | 1.01 million | +2.9% |
| 1977 | 1.03 million | +2.6% |
| 1978 | 1.06 million | +2.6% |
| 1979 | 1.08 million | +2.4% |
| 1980 | 1.08 million | -0.6% |
| 1981 | 1.02 million | -5.5% |
| 1982 | 892,352 | -12.4% |
| 1983 | 878,995 | -1.5% |
| 1984 | 891,465 | +1.4% |
| 1985 | 935,837 | +5.0% |
| 1986 | 943,047 | +0.8% |
| 1987 | 940,381 | -0.3% |
| 1988 | 937,416 | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 957,797 | +2.2% |
| 1990 | 984,554 | +2.8% |
| 1991 | 973,561 | -1.1% |
| 1992 | 1.00 million | +3.2% |
| 1993 | 1.14 million | +13.0% |
| 1994 | 1.27 million | +11.9% |
| 1995 | 1.35 million | +6.2% |
| 1996 | 1.41 million | +4.8% |
| 1997 | 1.48 million | +4.8% |
| 1998 | 1.55 million | +4.8% |
| 1999 | 1.63 million | +4.9% |
| 2000 | 1.71 million | +4.8% |
| 2001 | 1.71 million | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 1.78 million | +4.0% |
| 2003 | 1.94 million | +9.1% |
| 2004 | 2.05 million | +5.9% |
| 2005 | 2.12 million | +3.3% |
| 2006 | 2.23 million | +5.1% |
| 2007 | 2.32 million | +4.0% |
| 2008 | 2.32 million | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 2.42 million | +4.1% |
| 2010 | 2.48 million | +2.8% |
| 2011 | 2.54 million | +2.1% |
| 2012 | 2.63 million | +3.8% |
| 2013 | 2.70 million | +2.5% |
| 2014 | 2.76 million | +2.1% |
| 2015 | 2.83 million | +2.6% |
| 2016 | 2.86 million | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 2.90 million | +1.6% |
| 2018 | 2.96 million | +2.0% |
| 2019 | 3.03 million | +2.3% |
| 2020 | 3.10 million | +2.5% |
| 2021 | 3.20 million | +3.0% |
| 2022 | 3.24 million | +1.2% |
| 2023 | 3.27 million | +0.9% |
| 2024 | 3.34 million | +2.3% |
| 2025 | 3.42 million | +2.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 963,839 | 843,034 | 1.08 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 947,448 | 878,995 | 1.08 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.28 million | 973,561 | 1.63 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.06 million | 1.71 million | 2.42 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.77 million | 2.48 million | 3.03 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.26 million | 3.10 million | 3.42 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
- 20 South Africa 3.66 million compare
- 21 Russian Federation 3.63 million compare
- 22 Mozambique 3.43 million compare
- 24 Iraq 3.30 million compare
- 25 Angola 3.26 million compare
- 26 Yemen 3.15 million compare
More education data for Afghanistan
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 163,167 (2023)
- 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 6 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 55.0% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 42.6% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 13 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 7 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 112.23 (2023)
- School enrollment, primary 112.2% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, primary education, female in Afghanistan?
- School age population, primary education, female in Afghanistan was 3.42 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, primary education, female recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 3.42 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest school age population, primary education, female recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 843,034 in 1970.
- How does Afghanistan rank for school age population, primary education, female?
- Afghanistan ranks 23rd out of 222 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, primary education, female rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 20.8%. 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, female (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