South Africa—Out-of-School Children, Primary
South Africa's out-of-school children, primary was 448,146 in 2023, ranking #21 out of 175 countries. This represents a +4.1% change from 2022. Over the past 14 years, the highest recorded value was 1.4M (2000) and the lowest was 288,480 (2021). Data sourced from the World Bank World Development Indicators.
Historical Data
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 448,146 | +4.1% |
| 2022 | 430,540 | +49.2% |
| 2021 | 288,480 | -53.5% |
| 2020 | 620,737 | -1.6% |
| 2019 | 630,820 | -10.0% |
| 2018 | 701,278 | -7.9% |
| 2017 | 761,156 | +12.5% |
| 2015 | 676,716 | -30.7% |
| 2005 | 976,269 | -3.7% |
| 2004 | 1.0M | -6.2% |
| 2003 | 1.1M | -8.4% |
| 2002 | 1.2M | -10.9% |
| 2001 | 1.3M | -7.4% |
| 2000 | 1.4M |
Top Countries — Out-of-School Children, Primary
| # | Country | Value | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nigeria | 9.1M | 2023 |
| 2 | Pakistan | 5.4M | 2024 |
| 3 | Ethiopia | 4.2M | 2024 |
| 4 | Angola | 2.3M | 2023 |
| 5 | Tanzania | 2.0M | 2024 |
| 6 | Niger | 1.9M | 2024 |
| 7 | Philippines | 1.6M | 2024 |
| 8 | Burkina Faso | 1.4M | 2024 |
| 9 | South Sudan | 1.2M | 2024 |
| 10 | Mali | 1.2M | 2023 |
About This Indicator
Definition
Children out of school are the number of primary-school-age children not enrolled in primary or secondary school.
Methodology
Data compiled by Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://databrowser.uis.unesco.org/resources, note: The data are obtained through the UIS API. Detailed documentation is available at: https://api.uis.unesco.org/api/public/documentation/, publisher: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), type: Bulk file (csv), date accessed: 2025-09-22, date published: 2025-09.