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The high-rise architectures at Shibam, Wadi Hadhramaut (or Hadhramout, Hadramawt) Yemen. For.

Photo: Jialiang Gao www.peace-on-earth.org derivative work: JamesA · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale

Education & Knowledge

187th

of 198 countries placed

Placed from 3 of 4 key statistics

01The evidence

The 4 key statistics that decide it

Only these place Yemen on education & knowledge — one vote each. Every value is the publisher’s own, read at the edition the Country Index 2026 used — or, for a survey-based key, each country’s latest reading; the grey ticks are every other country it was compared with, lowest on the left.

Why these keys
  1. Key 1 of 4

    Out-of-School Rate, Primary

    UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

    Why it is a key: Primary-age children who are not in school at all: the floor of an education system.

    Latest reading per country, 2014–2024 · Yemen’s is from 2016 · CC BY-SA 4.0

    30.62

    Out-of-school rate, primary age (%)

    Lower is better

    Yemen: 30.62. Across the 192 countries at their latest reading, values run from 0.004 (United Arab Emirates) to 65.6 (Equatorial Guinea); the world median is 3.691.

    World median
    3.691
    Best in Western Asia
    0.004 United Arab Emirates
    Land neighbours
    Oman 5.756 · Saudi Arabia 0.527

    Each grey tick is one of 192 countries at its latest reading, 2014–2024.

  2. Key 2 of 4

    Participation in Organised Learning One Year Before Primary

    UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

    Why it is a key: Whether children take part in organised learning in the year before primary school — whether an education system reaches them before it starts.

    Latest reading per country, 2014–2024 · Yemen’s is from 2016 · CC BY-SA 4.0

    3.411

    Children one year before primary entry age in organised learning (%)

    Higher is better

    Yemen: 3.411. Across the 187 countries at their latest reading, values run from 3.411 (Yemen) to 100 (United Arab Emirates); the world median is 85.9.

    World median
    85.9
    Best in Western Asia
    100 United Arab Emirates
    Land neighbours
    Oman 88.73 · Saudi Arabia 64.35

    Each grey tick is one of 187 countries at its latest reading, 2014–2024.

  3. Key 3 of 4

    Upper Secondary Completion Rate

    UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

    Why it is a key: How far a schooling system carries the young people who get through primary — the only key here that measures anything past childhood.

    2025 edition · data for 2025 · CC BY-SA 4.0

    39.94

    Upper secondary completion rate (%)

    Higher is better

    Yemen: 39.94. Across the 164 countries in this edition, values run from 2.13 (South Sudan) to 99.27 (South Korea); the world median is 64.87.

    World median
    64.87
    Best in Western Asia
    95.87 Azerbaijan

    Each grey tick is one of 164 countries in the 2025 edition.

  4. Key 4 of 4

    Government Spending on Education

    UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

    Why it is a key: What a state chooses to spend on education, as a share of its economy — the input, where the other two keys measure reach.

    2023 edition · data for 2023 · CC BY-SA 4.0

    No reading

    Government expenditure on education (% of GDP)

    Higher is better

    UIS publishes no 2023 figure for Yemen, so the standing rests on the other keys.

    Across the 123 countries in this edition, values run from 0 (Somalia) to 16.39 (Kiribati); the world median is 3.709.

    World median
    3.709
    Best in Western Asia
    5.026 Kuwait
    Land neighbours
    Saudi Arabia 4.481

    Each grey tick is one of 123 countries in the 2023 edition.

03In context

Yemen beside its neighbours

A position reads best beside the countries around it. Every position below is a place among all 198 countries on education & knowledge, never a place within the region.

Western Asia
1st198thNot placed · 26 countries with too few key statisticsNo data

The whole world on education & knowledge

Yemen and the countries it borders

The standing is each country’s place among all 198 placed on the topic; the other columns are the publishers’ own values, read at the edition the standing used.

CountryStandingOut-of-School Rate, PrimaryOut-of-school rate, primary age (%)Participation in Organised Learning One Year Before PrimaryChildren one year before primary entry age in organised learning (%)Upper Secondary Completion RateUpper secondary completion rate (%)Government Spending on EducationGovernment expenditure on education (% of GDP)
Saudi Arabia77th0.52764.35—4.481
Oman119th5.75688.73——
Yemen187th30.623.41139.94—

“—” means the publisher gives no reading for that country in that edition. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed.

04Context, no vote

Where Yemen is ahead of the world, and behind

16 more statistics filed under education & knowledge, published in full and deliberately given no vote in the standing. Select a row for the publisher, the rank and the links.

Every country

Ahead of the world median1

Statistics on which Yemen does better than the middle country measured.

  • Intergenerational Persistence in EducationWorld Bank Group · 2017 · world median 0.4460.344No earlier reading

    Yemen: 0.344 · world median 0.446 · Correlation between own and parents' years of schooling, born 1980–89 (0–1). World Bank Group, 2017 edition, data for 2017.

    Published values in that edition run from 0.123 to 0.66; lower is better.

    Position 126th of 153 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2017 dataset

Behind the world median13

Statistics on which Yemen does worse than the middle country measured.

  • Wealth Parity Index, Lower Secondary CompletionUIS · 2024 · world median 0.5290.356No earlier reading

    Yemen: 0.356 · world median 0.529 · Adjusted wealth parity index, lower secondary completion (poorest vs richest fifth; 1 = parity). UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), 2024 edition, data for 2024.

    Published values in that edition run from 0.032 to 1.022; higher is better.

    Chart and every countryThe 2024 dataset

  • Lower Secondary Completion RateUIS · 2025 · world median 89.2158.84No real change since 2015

    Yemen: 58.84 · world median 89.21 · Lower secondary completion rate (%). UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), 2025 edition, data for 2025.

    Published values in that edition run from 13.73 to 100; higher is better.

    Position 116th of 164 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2025 dataset

  • Academic Freedom IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 2025 · world median 0.6190.24▲ Improved since 2015

    Yemen: 0.24 · world median 0.619 · Academic freedom index (0–1). V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg, 2025 edition, data for 2025.

    Published values in that edition run from 0.019 to 0.978; higher is better.

    Position 136th of 176 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2025 dataset

  • Primary Completion RateUIS · 2025 · world median 97.4374.77No real change since 2015

    Yemen: 74.77 · world median 97.43 · Primary completion rate (%). UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), 2025 edition, data for 2025.

    Published values in that edition run from 7.94 to 100; higher is better.

    Position 135th of 165 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2025 dataset

  • Mean Years of SchoolingUNDP Human Development Report Office · 2023 · world median 9.9335.484▲ Improved since 2013

    Yemen: 5.484 · world median 9.933 · Mean years of schooling (adults 25+). UNDP Human Development Report Office, 2023 edition, data for 2023.

    Published values in that edition run from 1.412 to 14.3; higher is better.

    Position 164th of 193 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2023 dataset

  • Upper Secondary AttainmentUIS · 2023 · world median 65.7625.61▼ Worsened since 2014

    Yemen: 25.61 · world median 65.76 · Adults 25+ who completed upper secondary or higher (%). UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), 2023 edition, data for 2023.

    Published values in that edition run from 5.26 to 97.89; higher is better.

    Position 84th of 95 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2023 dataset

  • Learning PovertyWorld Bank Group and UNESCO Institute for Statistics · 2023 · world median 34.0294.66No earlier reading

    Yemen: 94.66 · world median 34.02 · 10-year-olds who cannot read and understand a simple text (%). World Bank Group and UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2023 edition, data for 2023.

    Published values in that edition run from 2.331 to 98.5; lower is better.

    Position 8th of 125 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2023 dataset

  • Learning-Adjusted Years of SchoolWorld Bank Group · 2020 · world median 7.9414.179No real change since 2017

    Yemen: 4.179 · world median 7.941 · Learning-adjusted years of school (0–14). World Bank Group, 2020 edition, data for 2020.

    Published values in that edition run from 2.207 to 12.81; higher is better.

    Position 164th of 172 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2020 dataset

  • Expected Years of SchoolingUNDP Human Development Report Office · 2023 · world median 13.347.495▼ Worsened since 2013

    Yemen: 7.495 · world median 13.34 · Expected years of schooling. UNDP Human Development Report Office, 2023 edition, data for 2023.

    Published values in that edition run from 5.635 to 21.69; higher is better.

    Position 188th of 195 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2023 dataset

  • Harmonized Test ScoresWorld Bank Group · 2020 · world median 414.32321.33No real change since 2017

    Yemen: 321.33 · world median 414.32 · Harmonized test score (TIMSS-equivalent points; 300 = minimum, 625 = advanced attainment). World Bank Group, 2020 edition, data for 2020.

    Published values in that edition run from 304.92 to 575.27; higher is better.

    Position 166th of 172 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2020 dataset

  • Youth Literacy RateUIS · 2024 · world median 98.2260.22No earlier reading

    Yemen: 60.22 · world median 98.22 · 15–24 year-olds who can read and write (%). UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), 2024 edition, data for 2024.

    Published values in that edition run from 36.7 to 100; higher is better.

    Chart and every countryThe 2024 dataset

  • Adult Literacy RateUIS · 2024 · world median 93.9937.09No earlier reading

    Yemen: 37.09 · world median 93.99 · Adults 15+ who can read and write (%). UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), 2024 edition, data for 2024.

    Published values in that edition run from 26.83 to 100; higher is better.

    Position 168th of 172 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.

    Chart and every countryThe 2024 dataset

  • Minimum Proficiency in Mathematics, End of PrimaryUIS · 2023 · world median 43.82.325No earlier reading

    Yemen: 2.325 · world median 43.8 · Pupils at the end of primary reaching minimum proficiency in mathematics (%). UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), 2023 edition, data for 2023.

    Published values in that edition run from 1.8 to 93.42; higher is better.

    Chart and every countryThe 2023 dataset

No better end2

These describe the shape of a country — more is not better or worse, only different — so they are never ahead or behind.

  • Scholarly ArticlesOurResearch · 2025 · world median 2,2403,441No real change since 2022

    Yemen: 3,441 · world median 2,240 · Articles with at least one author at an institution in the country (full counting). OpenAlex (OurResearch), 2025 edition, data for 2025.

    Published values in that edition run from 1 to 1,094,890.

    Chart and every countryThe 2025 dataset

  • Nobel Prize Laureates by Country of BirthNobel Prize Outreach · 2025 · world median 21No earlier reading

    Yemen: 1 · world median 2 · Laureates born in the country, 1901 to date (people). Nobel Prize Outreach, 2025 edition, data for 2025.

    Published values in that edition run from 1 to 296.

    Chart and every countryThe 2025 dataset

06The top of the list

Who leads on education & knowledge

The three countries placed highest of 198, and the leaders Yemen can most readily be measured against.

All 198 countries
  1. 1

    United Arab Emirates

    Western Asia

    1st of 198 · 2 of 4 keys

    Photo: Unknown author · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale

  2. 2

    Greece

    Southern Europe

    2nd of 198 · 3 of 4 keys

    Photo: User:Ggia derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale

  3. 3

    Poland

    Eastern Europe

    3rd of 198 · 3 of 4 keys

    Photo: Ralf Lotys (Sicherlich) · CC BY 3.0, greyscale

Placed highest nearby

  1. Highest placed on all 4 keys

    Moldova7th4/4 keys
  2. Highest in Asia

    United Arab Emirates1st2/4 keys
  3. This page

    Yemen187th3/4 keys

Positions out of 198 placed on the topic. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed, and the top of the list is often held on fewer of them.

07Questions

Yemen on education & knowledge: questions answered

Every answer is built from the numbers on this page, so none can say something the page does not.

How does Yemen rank on education & knowledge?

Yemen is placed 187th of 198 countries on Education & Knowledge in the Country Index 2026, from 3 of its 4 key statistics (Out-of-School Rate, Primary, Participation in Organised Learning One Year Before Primary and Upper Secondary Completion Rate). The position is this site’s ordering of published statistics, not a rank any publisher printed.

What is the latest Out-of-School Rate, Primary figure for Yemen?

30.62 in 2024 (out-of-school rate, primary age (%)), according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS). The world median in the same edition was 3.691.

What is the latest Participation in Organised Learning One Year Before Primary figure for Yemen?

3.411 in 2024 (children one year before primary entry age in organised learning (%)), according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS). The world median in the same edition was 85.9.

How does Yemen compare with Saudi Arabia on education & knowledge?

Saudi Arabia is placed 77th of 198, and Yemen 187th. Out-of-School Rate, Primary: Saudi Arabia 0.527, Yemen 30.62; Participation in Organised Learning One Year Before Primary: Saudi Arabia 64.35, Yemen 3.411.

How have Yemen’s education & knowledge figures changed?

Out-of-School Rate, Primary fell from 41.92 in 2001 to 30.62 in 2016; Participation in Organised Learning One Year Before Primary fell from 3.624 in 2003 to 3.411 in 2016; Upper Secondary Completion Rate rose from 22.32 in 2000 to 39.94 in 2025; Government Spending on Education fell from 9.662 in 2000 to 5.151 in 2008.

Which education & knowledge statistics are missing for Yemen?

No current reading is published for Yemen on Bachelor's or Higher Attainment, Female Share of Researchers, Female Share of STEM Graduates, Gender Parity Index, Tertiary Enrolment, Government Funding per Primary Student, Government Spending on Education, Inbound Mobility Rate, Tertiary, Minimum Proficiency in Mathematics, End of Lower Secondary, Minimum Proficiency in Reading, End of Lower Secondary, Minimum Proficiency in Reading, End of Primary, Out-of-School Rate, Lower Secondary Age, Out-of-School Rate, Primary, Outbound Mobility Ratio, Tertiary, Participation in Organised Learning One Year Before Primary, PISA Mathematics Performance, PISA Reading Performance, PISA Science Performance, Pre-Primary Net Enrolment Rate, Primary Schools with Electricity, Primary Schools with Internet for Teaching, Pupils per Qualified Teacher, Primary, Qualified Teachers in Primary Education, Research and Development Spending, Researchers per Million Inhabitants, School Life Expectancy, Secondary School Enrolment, Share of Graduates from ICT Programmes, Tertiary Enrolment Ratio and Trust in Scientists. They are listed rather than hidden, so the evidence on the page can be checked against it.

09Method

Method, sources and how to cite

What this topic does not measure

How much children actually learn is only partly covered. International test scores exist for a limited group of countries, and they are published here as context rather than used as a key, because a key must describe most of the world. Universities, research, and youth and adult literacy also appear as context.

About education & knowledge, in full

How the Education & Knowledge standing is decided, step by step

A standing is a place in a list, not a mark out of anything. This one is part of the Country Index 2026, and it is worked out like this.

  1. A few key indicators decide it; the rest are context. 4 indicators on this topic are keys and 42 are charted alongside them without a vote. That split is the point: if every statistic voted, importing five more of one kind would quietly change what the topic is about.
  2. Each key is read at one edition. ⚠ The keys behind this standing do not all describe the same year — they run from 2023 to 2025, because publishers release on their own schedules. Read the standing as “how this country places now”, not as a snapshot of one year.
  3. Every country’s published value is turned into a place within that one key’s own field, and then expressed as a share of that field — how far down this key’s list the country sits, rather than how many countries are above it. Keys where a higher published number is worse (terrorism, hunger, disaster risk) are turned round first, so the good end is always the same end.
  4. Dividing by the field first is the whole reason this works. A place carries the size of its list inside it: 22nd of 44 and 108th of 215 are the same showing, and averaging the numbers 22 and 108 says loudly that they are not. Fields on this site run from about 44 countries to about 215, so averaging raw places would reward a country for happening to be measured in small ones. Dividing each place by its own field removes the size and leaves only the showing.
  5. The shares are averaged, plainly. One key, one vote — no key is weighted above another, because any weighting would be this site’s opinion presented as a measurement. Countries are then put in order by that average, and the average itself is never published. It is our arithmetic with nothing anchoring it, so printing it would invite it to be read as a measurement somebody made. The position it produces, the band, and the keys it was built from are all published instead — every one of them checkable against the tables on this page.
  6. A country needs 2 of this topic’s 4 keys — half, rounded up, and never fewer than 2. A standing built from one reading, printed beside one built from four, is two different things sharing a column heading. 198 countries clear the bar here.
  7. A key has to earn its vote every edition. It must measure at least 120 countries (below that it starts measuring who was surveyed rather than the world), it must not have more than 10% of its field tied at either end, and it must not repeat another key in the same topic — Spearman correlation above 0.92 counts as repeating. A topic needs at least 2 surviving keys to place anyone at all; this one has 4.
  8. A standing is relative, and the grouping is ours. It says where a country places against the others measured alongside it, so it moves when they move. The publishers listed on this page did not agree to be read together, and each measures its subject its own way: the underlying numbers are theirs, the ordering on top is this site’s — the same method as the rest of the Country Index, applied to one subject instead of all of them.

The key statistics and their licences

The other 16 statistics on this page come from 7 publishers, each named beside its numbers, with every edition and licence on the datasets pages.

The standing itself is part of the Country Index 2026, published under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Photographs

Yemen’s banner and the countries placed highest, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.

Cite this page

Nations Inquiry (2026). Yemen: Education & Knowledge — standing and statistics, Country Index 2026. https://nationsinquiry.com/countries/yemen/education

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