UNESCO's GEM Report 2026: Trends and Gender Disparities in India

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Key takeaways

According to the UNESCO GEM Report 2026, women's Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in Indian higher education reached 31.2%, outpacing men at 28.9%.
India reduced its upper secondary completion gender gap by over 65% since 2000, earning classification as a fast-progress country.
Despite progress, India's rural upper secondary Gender Parity Index (GPI) stands at just 0.59, compared to full gender parity in urban areas.
Global out-of-school youth rose for the seventh straight year to 273 million in 2024, excluding 13 million children in conflict zones.

UNESCO released the Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report 2026, highlighting key trends in Indian and global education.
The report shows that Indian women now outpace men in higher education enrolment across the country.
However, a sharp rural-urban divide continues to disadvantage rural girls at the school-completion stage.

The Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report is an independent flagship annual publication hosted and published by UNESCO.
It operates under the mandate of the Education 2030 Incheon Declaration and Framework for Action to monitor global progress on Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4).

Global out-of-school youth numbers rose for the seventh consecutive year to 273 million in 2024, excluding 13 million children in conflict zones.
Since 2000, enrolment increased by 30% in primary and secondary, 45% in pre-primary, and 161% in tertiary education.
Upper secondary completion improved from 37% in 2000 to 61% in 2024, but reaching 95% completion globally may take until 2105.
Grade repetition fell by 62% in primary and 38% in lower secondary education since 2000.
Fewer than 10% of countries have strongly equity-oriented education financing systems to support needy students.
While 75% of five-year-olds attend school, 27% enter primary prematurely, and only 60% complete one full year of preschool.

India's upper secondary Gender Parity Index (GPI) stands at 0.89 nationally, dropping to 0.59 in rural areas despite parity in urban regions.
UNESCO classifies India as a fast-progress country after it reduced its initial upper secondary completion gender gap by at least 65% since 2000.
Women outpace men in higher education with a Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) of 31.2% compared to 28.9% for men, maintaining female dominance for 7 consecutive years.
Female higher education enrolment grew by 42.2%, rising from 1.57 crore in 2014-15 to 2.24 crore in 2023-24.
Secondary school dropout rates fell to 7%, school retention reached 51.9%, and girls accounted for 48.4% of total school enrolment.

Free school meal programs delivered strong gains for female schooling, showing nearly double the positive impact on primary enrolment for girls compared to boys in poor rural areas.
Targeted Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) infrastructure projects reduced dropouts, as gender-segregated school toilets in rural areas boosted adolescent girls' retention.
Community mentorship programs helped transitions, as local girls' clubs offering peer support and life-skills training lifted secondary completion rates in Karnataka.
Coordinated national campaigns bridged historical gaps, helping India close over 65% of its baseline gender gap in upper secondary completion over two decades.

Rural adolescent girls face severe obstacles like long school commutes, safety concerns, and domestic chores, leaving a completion ratio of only 59 rural girls per 100 boys.
Overage enrolments and progression delays widen the gap between timely and late graduation across lower-income regions.
Education budgets fail to channel sufficient funding to needy populations, with equity grants accounting for under 0.5% of total education budgets in half the countries using them.
National monitoring systems lack detailed data, as 1 in 3 countries fails to report education disparities by location and 1 in 2 omits wealth disaggregation.

Governments must integrate realistic national benchmarks into public budgets and domestic planning cycles rather than relying on symbolic global pledges.
Policy packages should combine long-term infrastructure, social protection, and institutional reform instead of relying on isolated short-term interventions.
Public education financing must be reoriented to prioritize disadvantaged regions, rural schools, and marginalized households through direct targeted grants.
Monitoring systems must shift from gross enrolment ratios to completion metrics while integrating survey data with administrative records to track vulnerable groups.

India has made strong progress in women's higher education, but the rural-urban gap still hinders secondary completion for rural girls.
Achieving long-term gains requires equitable public funding, improved rural secondary infrastructure, and targeted local policies.