School life expectancy, secondary, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa
UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa: School life expectancy, secondary, both sexes was 5.1 years in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
5.1 years
Change on year
up 0.2%
Rank
102nd
of 221 groups
All-time high
5.1 years
in 2024
All-time low
2.34 years
in 1971
Years of data
55
1970–2024
School life expectancy, secondary, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa recorded 5.1 years for school life expectancy, secondary, both sexes in 2024. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and up 11.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, secondary, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa peaked at 5.1 years in 2024 and was at its lowest, 2.34 years, in 1971.
UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa ranks 102nd of 221 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.
School life expectancy, secondary, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 2.35 years | — |
| 1971 | 2.34 years | -0.7% |
| 1972 | 2.44 years | +4.3% |
| 1973 | 2.49 years | +2.0% |
| 1974 | 2.55 years | +2.7% |
| 1975 | 2.66 years | +4.4% |
| 1976 | 2.78 years | +4.4% |
| 1977 | 2.89 years | +3.9% |
| 1978 | 2.98 years | +3.2% |
| 1979 | 3.06 years | +2.4% |
| 1980 | 3.11 years | +1.8% |
| 1981 | 3.15 years | +1.4% |
| 1982 | 3.22 years | +2.0% |
| 1983 | 3.26 years | +1.4% |
| 1984 | 3.31 years | +1.5% |
| 1985 | 3.39 years | +2.4% |
| 1986 | 3.49 years | +3.2% |
| 1987 | 3.57 years | +2.1% |
| 1988 | 3.6 years | +0.9% |
| 1989 | 3.61 years | +0.2% |
| 1990 | 3.77 years | +4.7% |
| 1991 | 3.74 years | -1.0% |
| 1992 | 3.7 years | -0.8% |
| 1993 | 3.78 years | +2.1% |
| 1994 | 3.93 years | +3.9% |
| 1995 | 3.92 years | -0.3% |
| 1996 | 3.92 years | -0.1% |
| 1997 | 3.99 years | +1.8% |
| 1998 | 4.07 years | +2.1% |
| 1999 | 4.15 years | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 4.21 years | +1.3% |
| 2001 | 4.23 years | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 4.28 years | +1.0% |
| 2003 | 4.41 years | +3.1% |
| 2004 | 4.45 years | +1.1% |
| 2005 | 4.43 years | -0.5% |
| 2006 | 4.44 years | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 4.36 years | -1.9% |
| 2008 | 4.41 years | +1.3% |
| 2009 | 4.49 years | +1.8% |
| 2010 | 4.54 years | +1.1% |
| 2011 | 4.73 years | +4.2% |
| 2012 | 4.79 years | +1.2% |
| 2013 | 4.56 years | -4.7% |
| 2014 | 4.58 years | +0.4% |
| 2015 | 4.63 years | +1.1% |
| 2016 | 4.7 years | +1.6% |
| 2017 | 4.74 years | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 4.8 years | +1.4% |
| 2019 | 4.83 years | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 4.88 years | +1.2% |
| 2021 | 4.95 years | +1.3% |
| 2022 | 5.05 years | +2.0% |
| 2023 | 5.09 years | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 5.1 years | +0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.65 years | 2.34 years | 3.06 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.37 years | 3.11 years | 3.61 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.9 years | 3.7 years | 4.15 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.37 years | 4.21 years | 4.49 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.69 years | 4.54 years | 4.83 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.01 years | 4.88 years | 5.1 years | 5 |
Countries ranked near UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa
More education data for UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 6.15 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 21.65 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 2.17 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 23.21 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.71 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 6.49 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual -0.5257 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 17.53 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 8.61 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 6.11 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, secondary, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa?
- School life expectancy, secondary, both sexes in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa was 5.1 years in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, secondary, both sexes recorded in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 5.1 years in 2024.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, secondary, both sexes recorded in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.34 years in 1971.
- How does UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa rank for school life expectancy, secondary, both sexes?
- UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa ranks 102nd out of 221 groups with data for 2024.
- Is school life expectancy, secondary, both sexes rising or falling in UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this UNICEF: Middle East and North Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, secondary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release