Opinion: School enrolment is not enough to call education a success

A child entering a classroom is an important achievement. But it is not a sufficient measure of whether a country has fulfilled its educational responsibility. The 2026 UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report estimates that 273 million children and young people were out of school in 2024. The same report documents major gains in enrolment over the past quarter-century. Both facts deserve attention: progress is real, and exclusion remains enormous.

Our editorial view is that governments should be judged not only by how many children enter school, but also by whether students can stay, learn and complete their education. A national average can conceal disparities between urban and rural communities, between wealthy and poor households, and between students with different support needs. A higher enrolment number is good news, but it should not close the debate.

UNESCO reports that global upper-secondary completion rose from 37% in 2000 to 61% in 2024. That improvement demonstrates why long-term public policy matters. Yet the report also finds that the population outside education has increased since 2015, despite earlier gains. Policymakers who celebrate only one indicator risk overlooking the children left behind.

A more credible public scorecard would publish enrolment, attendance, learning and completion data together, with meaningful breakdowns wherever privacy and data quality permit. It would also make the cost of schooling visible, including transport, materials and the financial burden on families. No single indicator can capture every dimension of education.

This is an argument for greater accountability, not a claim that every country should adopt an identical model. Education systems differ. But public promises should be tested against outcomes that matter to students. Getting a child through the school gate is the beginning of an obligation, not its completion.