The GEM Report 2026 highlights that while education access is increasing globally and in India, major gaps remain in equity, completion rates, and early education pathways. It stresses that expanding enrollment alone is not enough without ensuring equal opportunities and learning outcomes for all.
Global Progress and Persistent Gaps
The Global Education Monitoring Report (GEM Report) 2026, which focuses on “Access and Equity: Countdown to 2030,” assesses the global progress toward achieving the goals while at the same time identifying the gaps to be addressed.
Despite the expansion of education systems over the last two decades, access to education alone is not a guarantee of equitable participation and completion. In 2024, a total of 273 million children, adolescents, and youth across the globe were out of school. This translates to one out of every six out-of-school children. Although this figure reduced between 2000 and 2015, it has continued to grow steadily over the last seven years.
At the same time, a lot of growth in education systems worldwide can be identified. An increase of 327 million students in primary and secondary education can be identified since 2000. This represents an increase of 30%. In addition, an increase of 45% in pre-primary education can be identified. This implies that an increase in the number of students entering education system can be identified. This, however, does not mean that they are completing their education.
According to the report, the evidence indicates that more than a third of young people are not completing their secondary education. Although the completion rate has been improving over the years, the rate of improvement has been slow.
Challenges in Measuring Education Access
The GEM Report also points out the need for a more nuanced approach to the measurement of access to education around the world. This is so because the statistics show an increasing trend in the number of people accessing early childhood education.
However, the situation is more complicated than this. To begin with, even as the statistics show an increasing number of people accessing pre-primary education around the world, only 60 percent of children starting primary school have received at least one year of pre-primary education. This is so because children are starting primary education before the recommended age.
In addition to this, the GEM Report points out the inequalities that exist within the education system. Fewer than one out of ten countries have a strong equity focus on their education financing systems. This means that even as money is being channeled into the education sector, it is not being channeled in a manner that promotes equity among the different social and economic groups.
Thus, the expansion of the education system has not been matched by an expansion of the opportunities for learning.
India: Key Trends
The report also points to some key trends in the Indian education system.
One key trend that the report points to is the early start that children take up in primary education. The report states that in India, for instance, 51 percent of five-year-olds are enrolled in primary instead of pre-primary education, a global phenomenon where a lack of education for young children leads parents to enroll their children earlier than usual in primary education.
Data obtained from the Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE+) also shows that the percentage of children under six years old enrolled in primary education increased from 35 percent in 2019-2020 to 41 percent in 2021 and then to 60 percent in 2022. Also, the percentage of students entering Grade 1 with prior pre-schooling increased from 41 percent in 2019 to around 80 percent in 2025.
The report also points to India as a country that has recorded significant improvements in the lower secondary completion rate, with a rise of at least 1.5 percentage points annually. Other such countries are Bangladesh, Cambodia, Mongolia, and São Tomé and Principe.
Apart from the outcomes related to schooling, the report also places the education trends within the broader context of socioeconomic trends. For example, the female labor force participation rate in India is around 30 percent. This is much lower than the female labor force participation rates in some other countries in the region, such as Bangladesh.
There is also a reference to the National Education Policy (NEP), which seeks to increase the participation rate in higher education. Under the NEP targets, the gross enrollment ratio for higher education is expected to rise from 24 percent in 2024 to 50 percent by 2035.
Conclusion
The GEM Report 2026 states, “Global enrolment is increasing, but there are concerns about completion, equity, and early education pathways.” The India-related content of this report reveals trends in early entry into primary education, completion of secondary education, labor force participation, and goals for higher education.
Reference
1. Main Report (Primary Source)
UNESCO. (2026).
Global Education Monitoring Report 2026: Access and equity – Countdown to 2030.
Paris: UNESCO.
https://doi.org/10.54676/JLKL3223
Clear Cut Education Desk
New Delhi, UPDATED: March 26, 2026 09:00 IST
Written By: Priyanka Thakur
