Global School Enrollment
Despite progress toward universal education, 272 million children and youth remain out of school in 2026—78 million at primary level, 64 million lower secondary, and 130 million upper secondary. Primary enrollment reached 91% globally, secondary 76%, and tertiary 43%. Sub-Saharan Africa (39%) and Central/South Asia (34%) account for 73% of out-of-school populations. Girls represent 133 million (49%) of those excluded from education.
Key Enrollment Insights
Primary Access Near-Universal Yet 78M Excluded
Primary school enrollment (ages 6-11) reached 91% globally in 2026, up from 84% (2000)—reflecting sustained push toward universal primary education under Millennium/Sustainable Development Goals. Yet 78 million primary-age children remain out of school, down from 101M (2015) but stagnant since 2020 (COVID-19 reversed progress). Geographic concentration: Sub-Saharan Africa 41M (53% of global total), South Asia 18M (23%), West Asia/North Africa 8M (10%). Country extremes: Norway 99.8% enrollment vs South Sudan 48%, Chad 54%, Niger 58%. Barriers to primary enrollment: poverty (32% of out-of-school children from poorest quintile households), child labor (152M children aged 5-17 in labor force, conflicts barriers overlaps with schooling), conflict/fragility (35M live in conflict zones—schools destroyed, teachers fled), disability (48% of disabled children out of school vs 14% non-disabled), distance (average 5km walk to nearest school in rural Sub-Saharan Africa). Gender slightly reversed at primary: more boys out of school (40M) than girls (38M)—boys drafted for farm work, early wage labor.
Secondary Education: The Critical Dropout Stage
Secondary enrollment (ages 12-17) lags at 76% globally—194 million adolescents out of school (64M lower secondary ages 12-14, 130M upper secondary ages 15-17). Lower secondary enrollment: 84% global average (higher than upper 68%)—dropout accelerates after age 14. Upper secondary crisis: only 68% enrolled—reflects transition to work, early marriage (girls), opportunity costs. Regional disparities: Europe 98% secondary, North America 96%, Latin America 88%, East Asia 91%, Middle East 79%, South Asia 72%, Sub-Saharan Africa 49% (lowest—reflects late primary expansion, insufficient secondary schools). Gender gap emerges: girls 133M out of school vs boys 139M total, but in 26 countries girls significantly outnumber boys—Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Niger, Chad. Early marriage drives female dropout: 650M women alive today married before 18, 20% before 15—marriage correlates with school exit. Vocational education alternative: 11% of secondary students in TVET (technical/vocational) programs, higher in Europe (22%), East Asia (18%), but quality varies.
Tertiary Expansion But Persistent Inequality
Tertiary enrollment (university, college, vocational post-secondary) reached 43% of eligible age group (typically 18-22) in 2026, up from 19% (2000)—explosive growth driven by emerging economies' higher education expansion. Regional variation extreme: North America 89%, Europe 75%, Latin America 56%, East Asia 61%, Middle East 43%, South Asia 32%, Sub-Saharan Africa 13% (wide gaps reflect secondary completion rates, university capacity, affordability). Gender reversal at tertiary: women 51% of enrollments globally (parity index 1.05)—women exceed men in North America 57%, Latin America 56%, Europe 54%, but lag in Sub-Saharan Africa 42%, South Asia 46%. Elite concentration: top decile household income 72% tertiary enrollment vs bottom decile 8%—affordability, preparedness gaps. Online/distance learning: 18% of tertiary students now fully online (up from 6% pre-COVID), MOOCs reaching 220M learners (completion rate 6% but expanding access). Field segregation: women 65% of education/humanities, 42% of natural sciences, 28% of engineering—STEM gender gap persists despite parity in overall enrollment. Graduate unemployment: 15% of tertiary graduates unemployed 12 months post-graduation in developing countries—skills mismatch with labor market.
Regional Crises and Progress Patterns
Sub-Saharan Africa out-of-school crisis: 106M children/youth (39% of global total)—primary 41M, secondary 65M. Population growth outpacing school construction: annual 2.7% population increase vs 1.8% school capacity growth—net deficit accumulating. Progress visible: primary enrollment 56% (2000) → 80% (2026), but absolute numbers up due to demographic boom. Success cases: Rwanda primary 96%, Kenya 91%, Ghana 88%—political will + donor support. Laggards: South Sudan 48%, Chad 54%, Niger 58%—conflict, poverty, low state capacity. Central/South Asia: 92M out of school (34% of global total)—driven by India 42M (world's largest absolute number despite 86% enrollment, reflects 370M school-age population), Pakistan 22M (62% enrollment), Afghanistan 18M (50% enrollment—Taliban restrictions on girls' education). Middle East conflict effect: Syria 2.1M out of school (pre-2011: 95% enrollment → 2026: 68%), Yemen 2.5M (80% → 64%), Iraq 1.3M—war destroys schools, displaces families, disrupts education systems. Latin America near-universal primary (94%) but secondary dropout: Guatemala 62% secondary, Honduras 64%, Nicaragua 66%—poverty, gangs, early pregnancy drive non-attendance.
Out-of-School Children by Level (2026)
Total 272 million broken down by education level
Key Finding: 272M total out of school: Primary (ages 6-11) 78M (29%), Lower Secondary (12-14) 64M (24%), Upper Secondary (15-17) 130M (48%). Upper secondary accounts for nearly half—reflects dropout acceleration after age 14 driven by poverty, early marriage, child labor, lack of nearby schools. Primary numbers declining (101M in 2015 → 78M in 2026), but secondary stagnant. Girls 133M (49%) vs boys 139M (51%) overall, but gender varies by region and level.
Enrollment Rates by Level and Region (2026)
Primary, Secondary, Tertiary enrollment percentages
Key Finding: Primary: Global 91%, Europe 99%, North America 98%, Latin America 94%, East Asia 96%, Middle East 87%, South Asia 89%, Sub-Saharan Africa 80%. Secondary: Global 76%, Europe 98%, North America 96%, Latin America 88%, East Asia 91%, Middle East 79%, South Asia 72%, Sub-Saharan Africa 49%. Tertiary: Global 43%, North America 89%, Europe 75%, East Asia 61%, Latin America 56%, Middle East 43%, South Asia 32%, Sub-Saharan Africa 13%. Education pyramid narrows dramatically in developing regions—Sub-Saharan Africa drops from 80% primary to 49% secondary to 13% tertiary.
Out-of-School Population by Region (2026)
Regional distribution of 272M total
Key Finding: Regional distribution: Sub-Saharan Africa 106M (39%), Central/South Asia 92M (34%), East Asia 28M (10%), Middle East 24M (9%), Latin America 14M (5%), Other 8M (3%). Sub-Saharan Africa + Central/South Asia = 198M (73% of global total). India largest single country: 42M out of school. Nigeria 12M, Pakistan 22M, Ethiopia 10M, DRC 8M, Afghanistan 18M. Conflict zones: 35M out-of-school children live in areas affected by armed conflict—Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan, DRC, Somalia, Sudan, Myanmar.
Primary Enrollment Progress (2000-2026)
Global and regional trends
Key Finding: Global primary enrollment: 84% (2000) → 88% (2010) → 90% (2015) → 91% (2020) → 91% (2026). Fastest growth 2000-2015 (+6 points), stagnation since 2020 (COVID reversed progress). Sub-Saharan Africa: 56% (2000) → 68% (2010) → 76% (2015) → 79% (2020) → 80% (2026)—impressive +24 points but still lowest region. South Asia: 78% (2000) → 85% (2010) → 88% (2015) → 89% (2020) → 89% (2026). Latin America: 91% (2000) → 94% (2026). Developed regions maintained 98-99% throughout. Out-of-school absolute: 101M (2015) → 78M (2026), but progress slowing.
Gender Parity in Enrollment (2026)
Female-to-male enrollment ratios by level
Key Finding: Parity index (1.0 = equal): Global primary 0.99 (near parity), secondary 0.97 (girls slightly behind), tertiary 1.05 (women exceed men). Regional: Sub-Saharan Africa primary 0.94, secondary 0.86, tertiary 0.74—girls disadvantaged at all levels. South Asia primary 0.98, secondary 0.93, tertiary 0.88. Middle East primary 0.96, secondary 0.92, tertiary 1.01. Latin America primary 0.99, secondary 1.02, tertiary 1.21 (women lead). Europe/North America 1.0+ at all levels. Worst countries: Afghanistan 0.68, Chad 0.77, Niger 0.82. 133M girls out of school vs 139M boys, but in low-enrollment countries girls disproportionately excluded.
Barriers to School Enrollment (2026)
Primary reasons children are out of school
Key Finding: Primary barriers (% of out-of-school children affected): Poverty/costs 42% (school fees, uniforms, materials unaffordable), Child labor 28% (152M children in labor force, conflicts with school), Distance/access 18% (no school within reasonable distance, especially rural areas), Conflict/displacement 15% (35M live in war zones, schools destroyed), Disability 12% (48% disabled children out of school), Early marriage 8% (girls, particularly age 12+), Cultural/gender norms 6%, Other 11%. Multiple barriers overlap—poor families more likely in remote areas, conflict zones. Addressing requires multi-pronged intervention: fee abolition, cash transfers, school construction, peace, accessibility, social norm change.
Understanding School Enrollment Data
Enrollment Rate Definitions
Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER): Total enrollment at a level (regardless of age) divided by official school-age population for that level. Can exceed 100% if over-age or under-age students enrolled. Net Enrollment Rate (NER): Enrollment of official school-age population only, divided by that age group. Maximum 100%. More accurate measure of age-appropriate access. NER figures used in this analysis. Primary: typically ages 6-11 (varies by country: USA starts age 5, some countries age 7). Lower secondary: ages 12-14. Upper secondary: ages 15-17. Tertiary: post-secondary, typically ages 18-22, includes universities, vocational colleges, professional training.
Out-of-School Children Measurement
UNESCO calculates out-of-school children as: (official school-age population) - (enrolled students of official age) = out-of-school number. Data sources: (1) Administrative data from ministries of education (enrollment records), (2) Household surveys (DHS, MICS asking "Does child attend school?"), (3) Population censuses (school attendance questions). Challenges: administrative data overcounts (ghost students, multiple registrations), surveys undercount (mobile populations, refugees not sampled). Dropouts vs never-enrolled: 40% of out-of-school children attended previously then dropped out, 60% never enrolled. Attendance vs enrollment: child may be enrolled but not attending regularly—absenteeism 15-25% in low-income countries, not captured in enrollment statistics.
Regional Classifications
UNESCO regional definitions: (1) Sub-Saharan Africa: 48 countries south of Sahara, excludes North Africa. (2) Central and South Asia: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Central Asian republics. (3) East Asia and Pacific: China, Southeast Asia, Oceania. (4) Middle East and North Africa: Arab states + Iran. (5) Latin America and Caribbean: Mexico south to Argentina. (6) Europe and North America: EU, UK, USA, Canada, Russia. (7) Oceania: Australia, New Zealand, Pacific islands. Alternative: World Bank income groups often used—low-income, lower-middle, upper-middle, high-income countries.
Gender Parity Index
Gender Parity Index (GPI) = (female enrollment rate) / (male enrollment rate). GPI = 1.0 means parity (equal enrollment). GPI < 0.97 indicates girls disadvantaged. GPI > 1.03 indicates boys disadvantaged (less common, but occurs in some Latin American countries at secondary/tertiary levels). GPI 0.97-1.03 considered "parity zone" accounting for statistical noise. UNESCO SDG 4 target: achieve gender parity at all levels by 2030. Current global GPI: primary 0.99 (near parity), secondary 0.97 (slight female disadvantage), tertiary 1.05 (female advantage). Regional variation: Sub-Saharan Africa 0.94 primary, South Asia 0.98 primary. Worst: Afghanistan 0.68 (Taliban restrictions on girls' education post-2021).
COVID-19 Impact on Enrollment
Pandemic disrupted education globally: schools closed average 141 days (2020-2021), affecting 1.6B students. Enrollment effects: (1) Dropout increase: estimated 10-16M students did not return after closures (2021-2022), particularly girls, poor, rural. (2) Primary enrollment stagnation: was on track to reach 93% by 2025, now stagnant at 91%. (3) Learning loss: students lost 0.5-1.5 years learning, grade-level proficiency dropped 10-20 percentage points. (4) Pre-primary decline: early childhood enrollment dropped from 70% (2019) to 65% (2021), partially recovered to 68% (2026). (5) Tertiary online shift: 75% of universities moved online (2020), 18% remain online-first (2026). Recovery uneven: high-income countries recovered to pre-pandemic enrollment by 2023, low-income countries still 3-5 percentage points below 2019 levels.
Data Limitations
Key limitations: (1) Administrative data quality: low-income countries lack computerized school management systems, reliance on paper records creates errors. Ghost students: teachers inflate enrollment to secure more funding. (2) Household survey coverage gaps: refugees, nomadic populations, remote rural areas undersampled. (3) Definition inconsistencies: some countries include pre-primary in primary, others separate. Compulsory education age varies (USA to 18, many countries to 15). (4) Attendance vs enrollment: being enrolled ≠attending regularly. Absenteeism 15-25% in many countries but not reflected in enrollment statistics. (5) Quality ignored: child may be enrolled and attending but learning nothing—enrollment ≠education. (6) Private/informal schools: unregistered schools in slums, refugee camps, rural areas not captured in administrative data. Estimated 5-8% of children in such schools uncounted.