Children out of school — all countries

Children out of school — OECD

Children out of school in the OECD in 2024 — 240,521 people. Since 2001, the indicator has fallen by 35.3%.

2024 240,521 people −47.77% vs 2023
World rank
Period maximum 1.82M people2021
Period minimum 240,521 people2024

Trend over time

2001–2024 · people

Children out of school — OECD, 2001–20240500,0001M1.5M2M2001200420072010201320162019202220242001: 371,853 people2002: 464,136 people2003: 448,828 people2004: 489,038 people2005: 397,063 people2006: 297,393 people2007: 379,170 people2008: 315,245 people2009: 426,511 people2010: 381,089 people2011: 478,127 people2012: 611,159 people2013: 1,380,843 people2014: 714,816 people2015: 1,139,717 people2016: 921,165 people2017: 939,132 people2018: 902,380 people2019: 956,280 people2020: 1,230,935 people2021: 1,817,342 people2022: 1,800,977 people2023: 460,475 people2024: 240,521 people
Change over the period: −131,332 (−35.32%) Average annual rate: -1.88 %
Children out of school — OECD, by year OECD All countries CSV XLSX
Year people Change Change, %
2024 240,521 −219,954 −47.77%
2023 460,475 −1.34M −74.43%
2022 1.8M −16,365 −0.9%
2021 1.82M +586,407 +47.64%
2020 1.23M +274,655 +28.72%
2019 956,280 +53,900 +5.97%
2018 902,380 −36,752 −3.91%
2017 939,132 +17,967 +1.95%
2016 921,165 −218,552 −19.18%
2015 1.14M +424,901 +59.44%
2014 714,816 −666,027 −48.23%
2013 1.38M +769,684 +125.94%
2012 611,159 +133,032 +27.82%
2011 478,127 +97,038 +25.46%
2010 381,089 −45,422 −10.65%
2009 426,511 +111,266 +35.3%
2008 315,245 −63,925 −16.86%
2007 379,170 +81,777 +27.5%
2006 297,393 −99,670 −25.1%
2005 397,063 −91,975 −18.81%
2004 489,038 +40,210 +8.96%
2003 448,828 −15,308 −3.3%
2002 464,136 +92,283 +24.82%
2001 371,853

About the indicator

The number of children of primary school age who attend neither primary nor secondary school. The absolute count answers the question of the scale of the task rather than of the state of a country, and for that reason it diverges from the share: a large part of all out-of-school children in the world lives in a few big countries where the share is low, not in those where the share is high. Both numbers matter for planning, and together they produce different lists of priorities.

Important: Primary school age only. Adolescents who do not attend secondary school are not part of this series, although there are more of them.

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), license CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO.