13 450 learners drop out of school in 2025
The education ministry has revealed that Namibia’s education system recorded 13 450 learner dropouts in 2025 out of a total enrolment of 913 223, with girls slightly more affected than boys, 6 884 females compared to 6 576 males, highlighting persistent gender disparities in a system under pressure from poverty, infrastructure challenges and policy gaps.
According to the ministry of education’s deputy executive director for finance and administration, Knox Otto Imbuwa, for the 2025 academic year, the total national enrolment stood at 913 223 learners, of which 848 159 were enrolled in state schools while 65 064 were enrolled in private schools.
Speaking last week during an engagement with the parliamentarian standing committee on education, he noted that out of the 848 159 enrolment in state schools, 422 244 (49%) were males and 425 915 (50.2%) were females.
“In private schools, out of 65 064, a total of 31 777 or 50.4% were females, while 32 287 or 49.6% were males. Out of the total enrolment of 913 223 learners, 13 450 or 1.47% dropped out of school. Of these, 6 884 (51.1%) were females and 6 576 (48.9%) were males,”
“The dropout is inclusive of both state and private schools; however, the dropout in private schools is less,”
He highlighted that the regions with the highest dropout rates include Ohangwena (1 758), Kavango East (1 616), and Kavango West (1 405), while regions with the lowest dropout rates include //Kharas (332) and Oshana (379),
Education statistics for 2024 further revealed that school dropouts remains a challenge across Namibia, with thousands of learners leaving the education system prematurely.
According to the figures, Ohangwena recorded the highest number of dropouts at 1 741 learners, followed by Kavango East (1 562), Oshikoto (1 347), and Kunene (1 385). Other regions with notable figures include Omaheke (1 291) and Kavango West (1 271). Khomas, home to the capital, reported 990 learners dropping out, while smaller totals were seen in Hardap (568), Erongo (484), and //Kharas (310).
Imbuwa said the figures reflect a complex mix of socio-economic, infrastructural and policy-related challenges.
“There is a myriad of issues… it is not only one factor that contributes to the dropout,” he said, pointing to poverty, geographic barriers and systemic weaknesses.
He highlighted menstrual health as a key concern, noting that about 14% of girls miss school due to lack of sanitary products, despite government interventions to support vulnerable learners.
Water and sanitation challenges, particularly in remote schools, as well as dilapidated infrastructure, continue to affect learning conditions. Imbuwa warned that poor sanitation facilities are “not conducive for the girl child,” contributing to absenteeism and dropout.
Learner pregnancy remains a nationwide challenge. While policy allows pregnant learners to continue attending school until childbirth, some schools still send them home prematurely.
Poverty continues to drive dropout rates, with many learners unable to access regular meals. The national school feeding programme, which mainly supports primary school learners, does not extend to secondary schools, leaving many vulnerable after transition.
“We have children that are not able to have meals,” Imbuwa said, adding that the government is exploring ways to extend feeding support to secondary level despite cost constraints.
Infrastructure deficits also expose learners to long and unsafe journeys, particularly in regions such as Zambezi and Kunene. He cited a recent incident in Zambezi where a learner was fatally struck by a vehicle while travelling early to school.
Mental health support remains limited, with a severe shortage of life skills teachers. “The ratio is about one teacher for plus-minus 1,000 learners,” he said, noting the strain on available personnel.
Two months ago, Education minister Sanet Steenkamp raised alarm over rising school dropout levels, describing the situation as “deeply worrying” and calling for urgent, coordinated action to keep learners in school.
Steenkamp made the remarks during the 2026 Regional Education Stakeholders’ Conference and Academic Year Launch held recently, where she urged schools, parents, traditional leaders and social services to work together to address the growing number of learners leaving school before completing basic education.
She reminded communities that the Namibian Constitution and the Basic Education Act of 2020 make it compulsory for children to remain in school until they complete basic education or reach the age of 16.
Despite this legal requirement, many learners continue to drop out due to poverty, teenage pregnancy, lack of parental support, long distances to schools, hostel challenges and behavioural issues.
Education leaders at the conference stressed the need for schools to strengthen early warning systems to identify learners at risk of dropping out.
Parents and hostel authorities were urged to closely monitor attendance and report prolonged absenteeism, while community mobilisation, psychosocial support and stronger enforcement of attendance regulations were highlighted as key interventions.
“The quality of an education system can not exceed the quality of its teachers and school leaders,” Steenkamp said.
Addressing delegates at the Otjozondjupa Education Conference in February, Steenkamp also expressed concern over the high dropout figures and cautioned education officials against making assumptions about the causes without relying on accurate data.
Deputy Executive Director for Schools/Formal Education, Edda Bohn, said dropout cases are closely linked to how data is captured and followed up, with schools already attempting to bring learners back through outreach programmes.
“The issue of dropout—what happens to learners—begins with how we capture data on the reasons for leaving school,” she said. “We already collect this information, and schools are making efforts to bring learners back. In addition, the ministry conducts outreach initiatives, such as admission campaigns, to encourage learners to return to school.”
Bohn stressed that ethics, values and morals remain central, anchored in a whole-school approach under the Safe Schools framework.
Affirmative Repositioning MP Tuhafeni Kalola raised concerns that dropout among boys is increasingly linked to disciplinary systems rather than economic hardship alone, warning that suspension and alternative punishments often fail to bring learners back to school.
