Namibia: Primary education, pupils

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Namibia's primary education, pupils rose 4.5% on 2023 (from 564,723 to 590,029).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +1.6% and a typical year strayed about 1.5% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.9 standard deviations above that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 8.8% in 1991 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.4% in 1989. 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 upward, about 15,343 a year. A straight line explains 99% 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.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 625,577 for 2027. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2022 to 2024 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 10,679, against 32,268 for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2024, Namibia had the 53rd highest value of the 119 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 2024 ranking

• Cuba — 50th of 119: 698,052
• Azerbaijan — 51st of 119: 603,966
• El Salvador — 52nd of 119: 594,860
• United Arab Emirates — 54th of 119: 586,477
• Switzerland — 55th of 119: 556,945
• Lebanon — 56th of 119: 533,550

What this measures

Primary education pupils is the total number of pupils enrolled at primary level in public and private schools.

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

All 39 values

Primary education, pupils in nearby economies

• Angola — 5.38 million (2023)
• Benin — 2.4 million (2022)
• Botswana — 381,674 (2022)
• Burkina Faso — 3.07 million (2024)
• Burundi — 2.52 million (2025)
• Cabo Verde — 61,167 (2022)
• Cameroon — 5.29 million (2024)
• Central African Republic — 813,767 (2016)
• Chad — 3.05 million (2024)
• Comoros — 102,152 (2024)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 21.15 million (2023)
• Congo, Rep.

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

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 Namibia's primary education, pupils?

590,029 in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1986?

It is up 100.02% from 294,985 in 1986 (1.84% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 590,029 in 2024 and the lowest 294,985 in 1986.

How does Namibia rank?

53rd highest of 119 economies with data for 2024.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.PRM.ENRL, 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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