Jamaica's children out of school, male (% of male primary school age) was 4.36% in 2024, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 6.36 percentage points from 10.72% in 2014.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 4.36% | 2024 |
| Five years earlier | 9.4% | 2019 |
| Ten years earlier | 10.72% | 2014 |
| Highest | 14.63% | 2021 |
| Lowest | 2.28% | 1983 |
| Average since 2015 | 10.71% | 2015–2024 |
| First recorded | 2.82% | 1976 |
What the numbers say
In 2024, Jamaica's children out of school, male (% of male primary school age) fell 8.45 percentage points on 2023 (from 12.81% to 4.36%).
Across the 26 yearly changes before that (1977 to 2023), the average change was +0.26 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.96 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.9 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 6.93 percentage points in 2023 and the biggest yearly fall was 8.76 percentage points in 2022. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2015 to 2024 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 21% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2024, Jamaica had the 46th highest value of the 71 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Jamaica | 4.36% | 2024 |
| Upper middle income | 4.4% | 2025 |
Closest to Jamaica in the 2024 ranking
- Bahrain — 43rd of 71: 5.42%
- Cuba — 44th of 71: 5.06%
- Dominican Republic — 45th of 71: 5.04%
- Costa Rica — 47th of 71: 4.15%
- Brunei Darussalam — 48th of 71: 3.77%
- Belarus — 49th of 71: 3.56%
What this measures
Children out of school are the percentage of primary-school-age children who are not enrolled in primary or secondary school. Children in the official primary age group that are in preprimary education should be considered out of school.
Limitations: The administrative data used in the calculation of the rate of out-of-school children are based on enrolment at a specific date which can bias the results by either counting enrolled children who never attend school or by omitting those who enroll after the reference date for reporting enrolment data. Furthermore, children who drop out of school after the reference date are not counted as out of school. Discrepancies between enrolment and population data from different sources can also result in over- or underestimates of the rate.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 33 values
| Year | Children out of school, male (% of male primary school age) |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 4.36 |
| 2023 | 12.81 |
| 2022 | 5.87 |
| 2021 | 14.63 |
| 2020 | 13.37 |
| 2019 | 9.4 |
| 2018 | 10.91 |
| 2017 | 10.51 |
| 2016 | 11.39 |
| 2015 | 13.88 |
| 2014 |
Children out of school, male (% of male primary school age) in nearby economies
- Bahamas, The — 15.5% (2024)
- Barbados — 17.83% (2024)
- Belize — 11.1% (2024)
- Bolivia — 9.24% (2024)
- Brazil — 2.53% (2024)
- British Virgin Islands — 24.03% (2024)
- Cayman Islands — 6.28% (2024)
- Chile — 1.3% (2024)
- Colombia — 7.84% (2022)
More education data for Jamaica
- Primary school starting age (years) — 6 (2025)
- Primary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 12 (2025)
- Secondary education, duration (years) — 5 (2025)
- Primary education, pupils — 211,097 (2024)
- School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 97.3% (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female (% gross) — 97.08% (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, male (% gross) — 97.5% (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils — 177,095 (2024)
- School enrollment, secondary (% gross) — 84.46% (2024)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Jamaica's children out of school, male (% of male primary school age)?
- 4.36% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1976?
- It is up 1.54 percentage points from 2.82% in 1976. The highest value was 14.63% in 2021 and the lowest 2.28% in 1983.
- How does Jamaica rank?
- 46th highest of 71 economies with data for 2024.
- Is the latest change in children out of school, male (% of male primary school age) unusual for Jamaica?
- In 2024, Jamaica's children out of school, male (% of male primary school age) fell 8.45 percentage points on 2023 (from 12.81% to 4.36%). Across the 26 yearly changes before that (1977 to 2023), the average change was +0.26 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.96 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.9 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.PRM.UNER.MA.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: 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. 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.
Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.
Legal entity
Devansh Yadav
Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh
Governing law: Courts at Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh
Phone: +91 8433475698
Legal: legal@analyzeit.in