South Asia: Persistence to last grade of primary, total (% of cohort)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, South Asia's persistence to last grade of primary, total (% of cohort) rose 13.12 percentage points on 2022 (from 60.65% to 73.77%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2022), the average change was +0.06 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 7.13 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.8 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 13.12 percentage points in 2023 and the biggest yearly fall was 34.54 percentage points in 2022. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2014 to 2023 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 18% 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

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

What this measures

Persistence to last grade of primary is the percentage of children enrolled in the first grade of primary school who eventually reach the last grade of primary education. The estimate is based on the reconstructed cohort method.

Limitations: The estimates have limitations in capturing real trend in that an observed rate will be applied to the underlying indicators such as repetition rate and promotion rate throughout the cohort life, and re-entrants, grade skipping, migration or transfers during a school year are not adequately captured.

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

All 54 values

Persistence to last grade of primary, total (% of cohort) in nearby economies

• Algeria — 92.68% (2021)
• Bahrain — 96.42% (2023)
• Djibouti — 72.68% (2022)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 99.75% (2020)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 94.67% (2022)
• Israel — 98.18% (2023)
• Jordan — 95.19% (2023)
• Kuwait — 85.74% (2020)
• Lebanon — 92.7% (2022)

More education data for South Asia

• Primary education, duration (years) — 5 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 7 (2025)
• Primary education, pupils — 160.82 million (2024)
• Primary education, teachers — 5.84 million (2024)
• Primary education, teachers (% female) — 58.29% (2024)
• Secondary education, pupils — 152.88 million (2024)
• Secondary education, teachers — 7.84 million (2024)
• Secondary education, teachers, female — 3.72 million (2024)
• Secondary education, teachers (% female) — 47.49% (2024)
• Persistence to last grade of primary, female (% of cohort)

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 South Asia's persistence to last grade of primary, total (% of cohort)?

73.77% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1970?

It is up 36.54 percentage points from 37.24% in 1970. The highest value was 95.19% in 2021 and the lowest 36.7% in 1971.

Is the latest change in persistence to last grade of primary, total (% of cohort) unusual for South Asia?

In 2023, South Asia's persistence to last grade of primary, total (% of cohort) rose 13.12 percentage points on 2022 (from 60.65% to 73.77%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2022), the average change was +0.06 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 7.13 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.8 standard deviations above that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Source

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

Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.