Lao PDR: Adolescents out of school (% of lower secondary school age)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, Lao PDR's adolescents out of school (% of lower secondary school age) rose 0.59 percentage points on 2024 (from 35.68% to 36.27%).

Across the 29 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2024), the average change was +0.05 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.17 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above 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 4.5 percentage points in 2010 and the biggest yearly fall was 3.82 percentage points in 1993. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is upward, about 1.64 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 95% 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.

Closest to Lao PDR in the 2025 ranking

• Algeria — 1st of 9: 77.57%
• Burundi — 2nd of 9: 37.09%
• Gambia, The — 4th of 9: 14.26%
• Kazakhstan — 5th of 9: 3.69%
• Kyrgyz Republic — 6th of 9: 2.82%

What this measures

Adolescents out of school are the percentage of lower secondary school age adolescents who are not enrolled in 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 32 values

Adolescents out of school (% of lower secondary school age) in nearby economies

• Australia — 1.85% (2024)
• Brunei Darussalam — 3.31% (2024)
• Cambodia — 17.59% (2024)
• Fiji — 2.85% (2023)
• Hong Kong SAR, China — 0.68% (2024)
• Indonesia — 1.9% (2025)
• Japan — 0.03% (2023)
• Kiribati — 6.16% (2024)
• Korea, Rep. — 2.9% (2024)

More education data for Lao PDR

• Primary school starting age (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, duration (years) — 5 (2025)
• Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 11 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 7 (2025)
• Primary education, pupils — 739,554 (2025)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 93.14% (2025)
• Primary education, teachers — 21,845 (2025)
• School enrollment, primary, female (% gross) — 92.64% (2025)
• School enrollment, primary, male (% gross) — 93.63% (2025)
• Primary education, teachers (% female) — 54.89% (2025)

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Questions people ask

What is Lao PDR's adolescents out of school (% of lower secondary school age)?

36.27% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1992?

It is down 2.06 percentage points from 38.32% in 1992. The highest value was 38.32% in 1992 and the lowest 20.23% in 2015.

Is the latest change in adolescents out of school (% of lower secondary school age) unusual for Lao PDR?

In 2025, Lao PDR's adolescents out of school (% of lower secondary school age) rose 0.59 percentage points on 2024 (from 35.68% to 36.27%). Across the 29 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2024), the average change was +0.05 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.17 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.SEC.UNER.LO.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.

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