Namibia's children out of school (% of primary school age) was 0.87% in 2024, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 0.29 percentage points from 1.16% in 2014.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 0.87% | 2024 |
| Five years earlier | 1.41% | 2019 |
| Ten years earlier | 1.16% | 2014 |
| Highest | 14.22% | 1989 |
| Lowest | 0.8% | 2013 |
| Average since 2015 | 1.2% | 2015–2024 |
| First recorded | 14.22% | 1989 |
What the numbers say
In 2024, Namibia's children out of school (% of primary school age) rose 0.06 percentage points on 2023 (from 0.8% to 0.87%).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1990 to 2023), the average change was −0.2 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.09 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 1.92 percentage points in 1999 and the biggest yearly fall was 3.5 percentage points in 2007. 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 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.09 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 78% 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
In 2024, Namibia had the 85th highest value of the 101 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 | |
|---|---|---|
| Namibia | 0.87% | 2024 |
| Lower middle income | 8.3% | 2025 |
Closest to Namibia in the 2024 ranking
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 34 values
| Year | Children out of school (% of primary school age) |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 0.8655 |
| 2023 | 0.8013 |
| 2022 | 1.1 |
| 2021 | 0.8629 |
| 2020 | 1.05 |
| 2019 | 1.41 |
| 2018 | 1.47 |
| 2017 | 1.46 |
| 2016 | 1.57 |
| 2015 | 1.4 |
| 2014 |
Children out of school (% of primary school age) in nearby economies
- Benin — 9.61% (2022)
- Botswana — 0.54% (2022)
- Burkina Faso — 34.29% (2024)
- Burundi — 26.47% (2025)
- Cabo Verde — 41.84% (2022)
- Cameroon — 3.76% (2024)
- Chad — 24.8% (2024)
- Comoros — 20.65% (2024)
- Congo, Rep. — 17.08% (2023)
- Côte d'Ivoire
More education data for Namibia
- Primary school starting age (years) — 7 (2025)
- Primary education, duration (years) — 7 (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 14 (2025)
- Secondary education, duration (years) — 5 (2025)
- Over-age students, primary, female (% of female enrollment) — 13% (2018)
- Over-age students, primary, male (% of male enrollment) — 18.31% (2018)
- Over-age students, primary (% of enrollment) — 15.7% (2018)
- Primary education, pupils — 590,029 (2024)
- School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 120.72% (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Namibia's children out of school (% of primary school age)?
- 0.87% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1989?
- It is down 13.35 percentage points from 14.22% in 1989. The highest value was 14.22% in 1989 and the lowest 0.8% in 2013.
- How does Namibia rank?
- 85th highest of 101 economies with data for 2024.
- Is the latest change in children out of school (% of primary school age) unusual for Namibia?
- In 2024, Namibia's children out of school (% of primary school age) rose 0.06 percentage points on 2023 (from 0.8% to 0.87%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1990 to 2023), the average change was −0.2 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.09 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.PRM.UNER.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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