Philippines: Children out of school, primary

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Philippines' children out of school, primary rose 9.9% on 2023 (from 1.47 million to 1.62 million).

Across the 29 yearly changes before that (1982 to 2023), the average change was +0.3% and a typical year strayed about 14.6% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 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 44.5% in 2021 and the biggest yearly fall was 32.3% in 1985. 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 4% 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, Philippines had the 4th 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.

Closest to Philippines in the 2024 ranking

• Ethiopia — 1st of 101: 4.24 million
• Tanzania — 2nd of 101: 2.01 million
• Niger — 3rd of 101: 1.88 million
• Burkina Faso — 5th of 101: 1.36 million
• Bangladesh — 6th of 101: 918,575
• Chad — 7th of 101: 855,041

What this measures

Children out of school are the number of primary-school-age children not enrolled in primary or secondary school.

Limitations: Due to different data sources for enrollment and population data, the number may not capture the actual number of children not attending in primary school.

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

All 38 values

Children out of school, primary in nearby economies

• Australia — 2,833 (2024)
• Brunei Darussalam — 1,438 (2024)
• Cambodia — 76,741 (2024)
• Fiji — 2,471 (2024)
• Hong Kong SAR, China — 4,491 (2024)
• Indonesia — 250,575 (2025)
• Japan — 4,225 (2023)
• Kiribati — 1,596 (2024)
• Korea, Rep. — 1,383 (2024)
• Lao PDR — 82,273 (2025)
• Macao SAR, China — 4,608 (2024)

More education data for Philippines

• 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) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, teachers — 527,504 (2024)
• Primary education, pupils — 13.06 million (2024)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 94.03% (2024)
• Secondary education, pupils — 11.87 million (2024)
• School enrollment, secondary (% gross) — 85.29% (2024)
• School enrollment, tertiary (% gross) — 47.41% (2024)

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 Philippines's children out of school, primary?

1.62 million in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1976?

It is up 75.94% from 918,601 in 1976 (1.18% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 1.91 million in 2006 and the lowest 460,200 in 1990.

How does Philippines rank?

4th highest of 101 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in children out of school, primary unusual for Philippines?

In 2024, Philippines' children out of school, primary rose 9.9% on 2023 (from 1.47 million to 1.62 million). Across the 29 yearly changes before that (1982 to 2023), the average change was +0.3% and a typical year strayed about 14.6% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 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, 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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