The bar charts illustrate the percentage of students of school and college age who had the opportunity to pursue secondary and higher education in four regions—Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and East Asia—in the year 2000, with a breakdown by gender.
Overall, female students outnumbered their male counterparts in secondary education in Europe and Latin America, whereas the opposite trend was evident in the remaining regions. In terms of higher education, male enrollment exceeded female enrollment across all regions except Europe. Notably, Europe recorded the highest proportion of students accessing both levels of education regardless of gender, while Sub-Saharan Africa had the lowest participation rates.
Regarding secondary education, the percentage of school-aged females slightly surpassed that of males in Europe, with the figures standing at nearly 100% and approximately 98%, respectively. A similar pattern was observed in Latin America, where around 60% of females attended school, compared to approximately 50% of males. Conversely, in East Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, male attendance rates were higher. In East Asia, 60% of boys were enrolled in secondary education, nearly twice the proportion seen in Sub-Saharan Africa. Meanwhile, female attendance rates in these regions were approximately 55% and 20%, respectively.
With respect to higher education, Europe exhibited the highest participation rates, with female students accounting for 70% and male students for 60%. In Latin America, 20% of males had access to tertiary education, compared to 15% of females. Similarly, in East Asia, college enrollment was marginally higher for males, at 10%, while the corresponding figure for females was 9%. The most pronounced gender disparity was evident in Sub-Saharan Africa, where only 5% of males and 3% of females pursued higher education.