School life expectancy, primary, male (years) (male years) in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: School life expectancy, primary, male (years) (male years) was 7.58 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, primary, male in Afghanistan, 1970–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school life expectancy, primary, male in Afghanistan is 7.58 years, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of down 0.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary, male in Afghanistan peaked at 8.77 years in 2004 and was at its lowest, 1.61 years, in 1982.
That places Afghanistan 17th out of 215 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 42 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary, male (years) (male years) in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 3.22 years | — |
| 1971 | 3.32 years | +3.2% |
| 1972 | 3.36 years | +1.0% |
| 1973 | 3.38 years | +0.7% |
| 1974 | 3.55 years | +5.1% |
| 1975 | 3.51 years | -1.3% |
| 1976 | 3.57 years | +1.9% |
| 1977 | 3.62 years | +1.3% |
| 1978 | 3.72 years | +2.8% |
| 1980 | 4.24 years | +13.9% |
| 1981 | 4.76 years | +12.3% |
| 1982 | 1.61 years | -66.3% |
| 1984 | 2.01 years | +24.8% |
| 1985 | 2.03 years | +1.3% |
| 1986 | 2.08 years | +2.3% |
| 1988 | 2.72 years | +30.9% |
| 1989 | 2.5 years | -8.2% |
| 1990 | 2.41 years | -3.8% |
| 1991 | 2.46 years | +2.3% |
| 1993 | 3.06 years | +24.5% |
| 1994 | 3.6 years | +17.6% |
| 1995 | 3.81 years | +5.9% |
| 1999 | 2.86 years | -24.9% |
| 2002 | 6.2 years | +116.5% |
| 2003 | 7.3 years | +17.8% |
| 2004 | 8.77 years | +20.2% |
| 2005 | 7.51 years | -14.4% |
| 2006 | 7.53 years | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 7.56 years | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 7.61 years | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 7.17 years | -5.8% |
| 2010 | 7.34 years | +2.4% |
| 2011 | 7.07 years | -3.7% |
| 2012 | 7.39 years | +4.5% |
| 2013 | 7.58 years | +2.6% |
| 2014 | 7.73 years | +2.0% |
| 2015 | 7.58 years | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 7.59 years | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 7.58 years | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 7.7 years | +1.6% |
| 2019 | 7.78 years | +1.0% |
| 2023 | 7.58 years | -2.6% |
Afghanistan compared with similar countries
- Afghanistan's 7.58 years is above the median for low income countries, which is 5.78 years, 1.3× the median. (23 countries reporting)
- Afghanistan's 7.58 years is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 5.79 years, 1.3× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where School life expectancy, primary, male (years) (male years) in Afghanistan changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | +116.5% | 2.86 years | 6.2 years |
| 1982 | -66.3% | 4.76 years | 1.61 years |
| 1988 | +30.9% | 2.08 years | 2.72 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 3.47 years | 3.22 years | 3.72 years | 9 |
| 1980s | 2.74 years | 1.61 years | 4.76 years | 8 |
| 1990s | 3.03 years | 2.41 years | 3.81 years | 6 |
| 2000s | 7.46 years | 6.2 years | 8.77 years | 8 |
| 2010s | 7.53 years | 7.07 years | 7.78 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.58 years | 7.58 years | 7.58 years | 1 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
More education data for Afghanistan
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 88,020 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 343,942 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 13,837 (2003)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 10,383 (2003)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.43 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.51 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 3.56 % change on previous year (2019)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0004 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1811 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary, male in Afghanistan?
- School life expectancy, primary, male in Afghanistan was 7.58 years in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary, male recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 8.77 years in 2004.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary, male recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.61 years in 1982.
- How does Afghanistan rank for school life expectancy, primary, male?
- Afghanistan ranks 17th out of 215 countries with data for 2023.
- Is school life expectancy, primary, male rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.0%. 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 life expectancy, primary, male (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 42 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release