Secondary education, pupils in Arab World
Arab World: Secondary education, pupils was 40.79 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Secondary education, pupils in Arab World, 1970–2024
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for secondary education, pupils in Arab World is 40.79 million, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.9% on the previous year and up 33.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, secondary education, pupils in Arab World peaked at 40.79 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 7.51 million, in 1971.
Arab World ranks 35th of 45 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.
Secondary education, pupils in Arab World, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 8.18 million | — |
| 1971 | 7.51 million | -8.2% |
| 1972 | 7.79 million | +3.8% |
| 1973 | 8.11 million | +4.1% |
| 1974 | 8.45 million | +4.1% |
| 1975 | 8.93 million | +5.7% |
| 1976 | 9.49 million | +6.2% |
| 1977 | 10.08 million | +6.2% |
| 1978 | 10.72 million | +6.4% |
| 1979 | 8.81 million | -17.8% |
| 1980 | 11.83 million | +34.3% |
| 1981 | 12.39 million | +4.8% |
| 1982 | 13.02 million | +5.0% |
| 1983 | 13.54 million | +4.0% |
| 1984 | 14.12 million | +4.3% |
| 1985 | 14.80 million | +4.8% |
| 1986 | 15.60 million | +5.4% |
| 1987 | 16.18 million | +3.7% |
| 1988 | 16.60 million | +2.6% |
| 1989 | 16.85 million | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 18.17 million | +7.9% |
| 1991 | 18.12 million | -0.3% |
| 1992 | 18.19 million | +0.4% |
| 1993 | 18.77 million | +3.2% |
| 1994 | 19.85 million | +5.8% |
| 1995 | 20.30 million | +2.3% |
| 1996 | 20.56 million | +1.3% |
| 1997 | 21.47 million | +4.5% |
| 1998 | 22.49 million | +4.7% |
| 1999 | 23.31 million | +3.6% |
| 2000 | 24.16 million | +3.7% |
| 2001 | 25.02 million | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 25.68 million | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 27.25 million | +6.1% |
| 2004 | 28.09 million | +3.1% |
| 2005 | 28.05 million | -0.2% |
| 2006 | 28.33 million | +1.0% |
| 2007 | 28.46 million | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 28.70 million | +0.8% |
| 2009 | 29.67 million | +3.4% |
| 2010 | 30.01 million | +1.1% |
| 2011 | 30.99 million | +3.3% |
| 2012 | 31.25 million | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 30.63 million | -2.0% |
| 2014 | 30.46 million | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 31.03 million | +1.9% |
| 2016 | 31.62 million | +1.9% |
| 2017 | 32.48 million | +2.7% |
| 2018 | 33.22 million | +2.3% |
| 2019 | 34.08 million | +2.6% |
| 2020 | 35.73 million | +4.8% |
| 2021 | 37.06 million | +3.7% |
| 2022 | 38.84 million | +4.8% |
| 2023 | 40.03 million | +3.1% |
| 2024 | 40.79 million | +1.9% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Secondary education, pupils in Arab World 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | +34.3% | 8.81 million | 11.83 million |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 8.81 million | 7.51 million | 10.72 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 14.49 million | 11.83 million | 16.85 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 20.12 million | 18.12 million | 23.31 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 27.34 million | 24.16 million | 29.67 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 31.58 million | 30.01 million | 34.08 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 38.49 million | 35.73 million | 40.79 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near Arab World
- 32 Nepal 3.67 million compare
- 33 Morocco 3.57 million compare
- 34 Afghanistan 3.43 million compare
- 35 Saudi Arabia 3.36 million compare
- 36 Ghana 3.33 million compare
- 37 Poland 3.33 million compare
- 38 Cote d'Ivoire 3.28 million compare
More education data for Arab World
- Population ages 0-14 32.0% (2025)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1129 units per person (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 2.58 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.7891 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 55.62 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 40.79 million (2024)
- Population ages 15-64 63.3% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is secondary education, pupils in Arab World?
- Secondary education, pupils in Arab World was 40.79 million in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest secondary education, pupils recorded in Arab World?
- The highest recorded value was 40.79 million in 2024.
- What is the lowest secondary education, pupils recorded in Arab World?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.51 million in 1971.
- How does Arab World rank for secondary education, pupils?
- Arab World ranks 35th out of 45 groups with data for 2024.
- Is secondary education, pupils rising or falling in Arab World?
- Over the last ten years it is up 33.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Arab World data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Secondary education, pupils. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Secondary education pupils is the total number of pupils enrolled at secondary level in public and private schools.