Arab World: Primary education, pupils (% female)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2018, Arab World's primary education, pupils (% female) rose 0.02 percentage points on 2017 (from 47.45% to 47.47%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1988 to 2017), the average change was +0.13 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.25 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.9 percentage points in 1997 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.78 percentage points in 1996. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2009 to 2018 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.08 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 92% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

What this measures

Female pupils as a percentage of total pupils at primary level include enrollments in public and private schools.

Limitations: The percentage of female enrollment is limited in assessing gender parity, because it's affected by the gender composition of population. Ratio of female to male in enrollment rate provides a population adjusted measure of gender parity.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 49 values

Primary education, pupils (% female) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 38.96% (2018)
• Algeria — 47.82% (2018)
• Bahrain — 49.38% (2018)
• Djibouti — 46.36% (2019)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 48.6% (2018)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 50.13% (2017)
• Israel — 48.86% (2017)
• Jordan — 48.92% (2018)
• Kuwait — 48.97% (2018)
• Lebanon — 48.21% (2018)
• Malta

More education data for Arab World

• Primary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• School enrollment, tertiary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 1.08 (2024)
• Primary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group) — 83.15% (2024)
• Primary education, pupils — 55.62 million (2024)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 91.56% (2024)
• School enrollment, primary, female (% gross) — 89.65% (2024)
• School enrollment, primary, male (% gross) — 93.4% (2024)
• Primary education, teachers — 2.58 million (2024)
• Primary education, teachers (% female)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Arab World's primary education, pupils (% female)?

47.47% in 2018, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1970?

It is up 9.13 percentage points from 38.34% in 1970. The highest value was 47.47% in 2018 and the lowest 38.27% in 1971.

Is the latest change in primary education, pupils (% female) unusual for Arab World?

In 2018, Arab World's primary education, pupils (% female) rose 0.02 percentage points on 2017 (from 47.45% to 47.47%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1988 to 2017), the average change was +0.13 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.25 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://uis.unesco.org/bdds, publisher: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS).

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.PRM.ENRL.FE.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://uis.unesco.org/bdds, publisher: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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