For a decade, Portugal led the fight against school failure. And in 2023, with an early school leaving rate of 8%, it even met the European Union (EU) target of reducing school leaving rates to below 9% by 2030.
Compared to 2013, 15 EU countries reported a lower percentage of early exits in 2023, with Portugal recording the largest decline (-10.9%), followed by Spain (-9.9%) and Malta (-7.1%). In contrast, the largest increase was recorded in Germany (+3.0%), followed by Denmark (+2.2%) and Slovenia (+1.5%).
Across all 27 EU countries in 2023, the rate of “early school leavers” (young people aged 18 to 24 leaving education and training early) was 9.5%. This percentage has fallen steadily over the past 10 years (from 11.8% in 2013), bringing EU members closer to the target of reducing early school leaving rates to below 9% by 2030.
In 2023, more boys will leave education and training earlier than girls: 11.3% of boys versus 7.7% of girls. The share of boys fell from 13.6% in 2013 to 11.3% in 2023. At the same time, the share of girls decreased from 10.0% in 2013 to 7.7% in 2023.
The data shows that 16 EU countries have already achieved the pan-European target of 9.0% by 2030. The lowest rates of early termination of education and training were recorded in Croatia (2.0%), Poland and Greece (each 3.7%), and Ireland. (4.0%).
At the other end of the spectrum are the EU countries that recorded the highest percentage of early exits in 2023: Romania (16.6%), Spain (13.7%), Germany (12.8%) and Hungary (11. 6%).
Author: João Saramago
Source: CM Jornal
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