Share of children out of school — all countries

Share of children out of school — South Asia

Share of children out of school in South Asia in 2024 — 3.93%. Since 2008, the indicator has risen by 1.95 pp.

2024 3.93% −2.82 pp vs 2023
World rank —
Period maximum 7.62%2021
Period minimum 0.8%2012

Trend over time

2008–2024 · % of primary school-age children

Share of children out of school — South Asia, 2008–2024024682008201020122014201620182020202220242008: 1.99%2009: 3.19%2010: 2.21%2011: 2.77%2012: 0.8%2016: 4.02%2017: 5.61%2018: 6.02%2021: 7.62%2022: 5.91%2023: 6.75%2024: 3.93%
Change over the period: +1.95 pp Annual average: 0.12 pp
Share of children out of school — South Asia, by year South Asia All countries CSV XLSX
Year % Change, pp
2024 3.93 −2.82 pp
2023 6.75 +0.84 pp
2022 5.91 −1.71 pp
2021 7.62 —
2018 6.02 +0.41 pp
2017 5.61 +1.59 pp
2016 4.02 —
2012 0.8 −1.97 pp
2011 2.77 +0.56 pp
2010 2.21 −0.98 pp
2009 3.19 +1.2 pp
2008 1.99 —

About the indicator

The share of children of primary school age not attending school. Unlike the absolute count, the indicator speaks to the state of the education system in a country, and it shows that the task does not reduce to poverty: at comparable income the shares differ severalfold, and the highest values come from countries where schooling is obstructed by conflict or by a nomadic way of life.

Important: The aggregate is weighted by the number of children aged 0–14: total population is the wrong weight here — the share of children differs fourfold across countries.

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