Share of youth not in education, employment or training, total in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka: Share of youth not in education, employment or training, total was 17.2% in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
17.2%
Change on year
down 5.3%
World rank
52nd
of 124 countries
All-time high
29.6%
in 2014
All-time low
17.2%
in 2024
Years of data
14
2010–2024

Share of youth not in education, employment or training, total in Sri Lanka, 2010–2024

01020302010201720242010: 26.7 % of youth population2011: 26.5 % of youth population2013: 28.1 % of youth population2014: 29.6 % of youth population2015: 26.6 % of youth population2016: 27.1 % of youth population2017: 24.7 % of youth population2018: 24.2 % of youth population2019: 21.2 % of youth population2020: 21.5 % of youth population2021: 19.4 % of youth population2022: 18.1 % of youth population2023: 18.2 % of youth population2024: 17.2 % of youth population

Source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO). Measured in % of youth population.

Analysis

Sri Lanka recorded 17.2% for share of youth not in education, employment or training, total in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 14 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 5.3% on the previous year and down 41.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of youth not in education, employment or training, total in Sri Lanka peaked at 29.6% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 17.2%, in 2024.

Sri Lanka ranks 52nd of 124 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.

Share of youth not in education, employment or training, total in Sri Lanka, year by year

Annual values for Share of youth not in education, employment or training, total (% of youth population) in Sri Lanka, 2010 to 2024.
Year % of youth population Change
2010 26.7%
2011 26.5% -0.6%
2013 28.1% +6.1%
2014 29.6% +5.1%
2015 26.6% -9.9%
2016 27.1% +1.7%
2017 24.7% -8.7%
2018 24.2% -2.2%
2019 21.2% -12.3%
2020 21.5% +1.4%
2021 19.4% -9.9%
2022 18.1% -6.8%
2023 18.2% +0.8%
2024 17.2% -5.3%

Sri Lanka compared with similar countries

  • Sri Lanka's 17.2% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 19.7%, 88% of the median. (41 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 26.1% 21.2% 29.6% 9
2020s 18.9% 17.2% 21.5% 5

Countries ranked near Sri Lanka

  1. 49 Paraguay 18.6% compare
  2. 50 Kenya 18.5% compare
  3. 51 Ecuador 17.7% compare
  4. 53 Romania 17.0% compare
  5. 54 Ukraine 16.5% compare
  6. 55 Saudi Arabia 16.4% compare

See the full ranking of 143 places →

More work & labour data for Sri Lanka

All data for Sri Lanka →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of youth not in education, employment or training, total in Sri Lanka?
Share of youth not in education, employment or training, total in Sri Lanka was 17.2% in 2024, according to Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
What is the highest share of youth not in education, employment or training, total recorded in Sri Lanka?
The highest recorded value was 29.6% in 2014.
What is the lowest share of youth not in education, employment or training, total recorded in Sri Lanka?
The lowest recorded value was 17.2% in 2024.
How does Sri Lanka rank for share of youth not in education, employment or training, total?
Sri Lanka ranks 52nd out of 124 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of youth not in education, employment or training, total rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
Over the last ten years it is down 41.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
The figures come from Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Share of youth not in education, employment or training, total (% of youth population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of youth not in education, employment or training, total in Sri Lanka. Statizoid, drawing on Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO). Retrieved 17 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-youth-not-in-education-employment-or-training-total-percent-of-youth-population-2/sri-lanka/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of youth not in education, employment or training, total (% of youth population)
Unit
% of youth population
Source
Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
143 places, 2,755 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

The share of youth not in education, employment or training (also known as “the NEET rate”) conveys the number of young persons not in education, employment or training as a percentage of the total youth population. Youth not in education are those who were neither enrolled in school nor in a formal training program (e.g. vocational training). For the purposes of this indicator, youth is defined as all persons between the ages of 15 and 24 (inclusive).