School age population, upper secondary education, both sexes in Iraq
Iraq: School age population, upper secondary education, both sexes was 2.99 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
2.99 million
Change on year
up 2.7%
World rank
23rd
of 220 countries
All-time high
2.99 million
in 2025
All-time low
548,080
in 1975
Years of data
56
1970–2025
School age population, upper secondary education, both sexes in Iraq, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school age population, upper secondary education, both sexes in Iraq is 2.99 million, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
That represents a change of up 2.7% on the previous year and up 23.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, upper secondary education, both sexes in Iraq peaked at 2.99 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 548,080, in 1975.
Iraq ranks 23rd of 220 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
School age population, upper secondary education, both sexes in Iraq, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 593,113 | — |
| 1971 | 623,834 | +5.2% |
| 1972 | 618,982 | -0.8% |
| 1973 | 574,048 | -7.3% |
| 1974 | 552,230 | -3.8% |
| 1975 | 548,080 | -0.8% |
| 1976 | 585,887 | +6.9% |
| 1977 | 644,840 | +10.1% |
| 1978 | 737,629 | +14.4% |
| 1979 | 833,745 | +13.0% |
| 1980 | 911,269 | +9.3% |
| 1981 | 943,979 | +3.6% |
| 1982 | 974,422 | +3.2% |
| 1983 | 1.01 million | +3.3% |
| 1984 | 1.04 million | +3.8% |
| 1985 | 1.09 million | +4.0% |
| 1986 | 1.11 million | +2.5% |
| 1987 | 1.16 million | +3.9% |
| 1988 | 1.19 million | +2.6% |
| 1989 | 1.22 million | +2.5% |
| 1990 | 1.25 million | +3.0% |
| 1991 | 1.25 million | -0.7% |
| 1992 | 1.27 million | +2.0% |
| 1993 | 1.30 million | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 1.37 million | +5.3% |
| 1995 | 1.41 million | +2.5% |
| 1996 | 1.44 million | +2.4% |
| 1997 | 1.47 million | +2.4% |
| 1998 | 1.51 million | +2.5% |
| 1999 | 1.55 million | +2.7% |
| 2000 | 1.60 million | +3.0% |
| 2001 | 1.64 million | +2.9% |
| 2002 | 1.69 million | +2.5% |
| 2003 | 1.73 million | +2.8% |
| 2004 | 1.78 million | +2.7% |
| 2005 | 1.84 million | +3.7% |
| 2006 | 1.92 million | +4.3% |
| 2007 | 1.92 million | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 1.93 million | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 2.02 million | +4.4% |
| 2010 | 2.08 million | +2.9% |
| 2011 | 2.13 million | +2.4% |
| 2012 | 2.19 million | +2.7% |
| 2013 | 2.28 million | +4.4% |
| 2014 | 2.37 million | +3.7% |
| 2015 | 2.43 million | +2.5% |
| 2016 | 2.48 million | +2.0% |
| 2017 | 2.51 million | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 2.54 million | +1.3% |
| 2019 | 2.58 million | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 2.63 million | +1.8% |
| 2021 | 2.68 million | +2.1% |
| 2022 | 2.75 million | +2.7% |
| 2023 | 2.83 million | +2.7% |
| 2024 | 2.91 million | +2.8% |
| 2025 | 2.99 million | +2.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 631,239 | 548,080 | 833,745 | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.06 million | 911,269 | 1.22 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.38 million | 1.25 million | 1.55 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.81 million | 1.60 million | 2.02 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.36 million | 2.08 million | 2.58 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.80 million | 2.63 million | 2.99 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iraq
- 20 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 3.30 million compare
- 21 South Africa 3.27 million compare
- 22 Japan 3.25 million compare
- 24 Tanzania, United Republic of 2.93 million compare
- 25 Italy 2.90 million compare
- 26 Afghanistan 2.88 million compare
More education data for Iraq
- 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 0.0495 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 286,890 (2007)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 2 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 4 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 60.5% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 36.0% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, upper secondary education, both sexes in Iraq?
- School age population, upper secondary education, both sexes in Iraq was 2.99 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, upper secondary education, both sexes recorded in Iraq?
- The highest recorded value was 2.99 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest school age population, upper secondary education, both sexes recorded in Iraq?
- The lowest recorded value was 548,080 in 1975.
- How does Iraq rank for school age population, upper secondary education, both sexes?
- Iraq ranks 23rd out of 220 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, upper secondary education, both sexes rising or falling in Iraq?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iraq data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, upper secondary 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