UNICEF estimates that over 100 million children of primary
school age were out of school in 2008, 52 per cent of them
girls.1 South Asia has the highest number of out-of-school
children (33 million), followed by West and Central Africa
(25 million) and Eastern and Southern Africa (19 million).
In more than 60 developing countries, at least 90 per cent
of primary-school-aged children are in school – but only
12 developing countries and territories have achieved the
same level of secondary school attendance. The lowest rates
of primary school participation are in sub-Saharan Africa,
where only 65 per cent of primary-school-aged children are
in school.
Children from the poorest 20 per cent of households are
less likely to attend primary school than children from the
richest 20 per cent of households, according to data from 43
developing countries. Disparities based on household wealth
vary widely among African countries: In Liberia, children
from the richest households are 3.5 times as likely to attend
primary school as children from the poorest households,
while in Zimbabwe, the richest children’s chances of getting
an education are just slightly better than those of the poorest
children.
Disparities based on area of residence are also marked. In 43
countries with available data, 86 per cent of urban children
attend primary school, compared to only 72 per cent of
rural children. The largest disparities can be seen in Liberia
and Niger, where urban children are twice as likely as rural
children to attend primary school.
1 UNESCO’s estimate of 72 million children out of school is calculated using a different methodology.
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