Namibia: Over-age students, primary (% of enrollment)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2018, Namibia's over-age students, primary (% of enrollment) rose 0.12 percentage points on 2017 (from 15.58% to 15.7%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1982 to 2017), the average change was +0.59 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 10.92 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.0 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 27.55 percentage points in 1992 and the biggest yearly fall was 27.55 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.

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

How it compares

In 2018, Namibia had the 15th highest value of the 77 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.

Closest to Namibia in the 2018 ranking

• Timor-Leste — 12th of 77: 16.08%
• Suriname — 13th of 77: 16.04%
• Burkina Faso — 14th of 77: 15.78%
• Ghana — 16th of 77: 15.43%
• Colombia — 17th of 77: 15.19%
• Cambodia — 18th of 77: 13.9%

What this measures

Over-age students are the percentage of those enrolled who are older than the official school-age range for primary education.

All 45 values

Over-age students, primary (% of enrollment) in nearby economies

• Benin — 7.87% (2018)
• Burkina Faso — 15.78% (2018)
• Burundi — 17.06% (2018)
• Cabo Verde — 10.2% (2018)
• Cameroon — 12% (2017)
• Chad — 13.89% (2016)
• Côte d'Ivoire — 7.98% (2018)
• Equatorial Guinea — 22.58% (2015)
• Eritrea — 24.69% (2018)
• Eswatini — 28.27% (2017)

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)
• Primary education, pupils — 590,029 (2024)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 120.72% (2024)
• Secondary education, pupils — 236,050 (2024)
• School enrollment, secondary (% gross)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Namibia's over-age students, primary (% of enrollment)?

15.7% in 2018, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1970?

It is up 15.7 percentage points from 0% in 1970. The highest value was 27.55% in 1992 and the lowest 0% in 1970.

How does Namibia rank?

15th highest of 77 economies with data for 2018.

Is the latest change in over-age students, primary (% of enrollment) unusual for Namibia?

In 2018, Namibia's over-age students, primary (% of enrollment) rose 0.12 percentage points on 2017 (from 15.58% to 15.7%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1982 to 2017), the average change was +0.59 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 10.92 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.0 standard deviations below 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.OENR.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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