Primary education, pupils in Kenya
Kenya: Primary education, pupils was 8.04 million in 2023. ▲ Rising
Primary education, pupils in Kenya, 1970–2023
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Analysis
In 2023, primary education, pupils in Kenya stood at 8.04 million.
The figure is down 0.7% on the previous year and down 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, primary education, pupils in Kenya peaked at 8.28 million in 2017 and was at its lowest, 1.26 million, in 1970.
Kenya ranks 18th of 206 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 49 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.24 million | 1.26 million | 3.42 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.95 million | 3.58 million | 4.39 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.58 million | 4.39 million | 4.83 million | 8 |
| 2000s | 5.97 million | 4.90 million | 7.15 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.82 million | 6.41 million | 8.28 million | 7 |
| 2020s | 7.88 million | 7.61 million | 8.10 million | 4 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More education data for Kenya
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 36.3% (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 60.7% (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 98.2% (2023)
- Primary education, teachers 281,500 (2023)
- School enrollment, primary, female 96.6% (2023)
- School enrollment, primary, male 99.8% (2023)
- Labor force, female 47.4% (2025)
- Labor force, total 24.71 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is primary education, pupils in Kenya?
- Primary education, pupils in Kenya was 8.04 million in 2023, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest primary education, pupils recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 8.28 million in 2017.
- What is the lowest primary education, pupils recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.26 million in 1970.
- How does Kenya rank for primary education, pupils?
- Kenya ranks 18th out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
- Is primary education, pupils rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Primary education, pupils. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Primary education pupils is the total number of pupils enrolled at primary level in public and private schools.