A new global report by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization has revealed that the number of students enrolled in higher education worldwide has more than doubled over the past two decades, reaching 269 million in 2024, with Nigeria now ranking among the world’s leading sources of international students.
The findings were contained in UNESCO’s inaugural Higher Education Global Trends Report, which analysed new data from 146 countries and highlighted both the rapid expansion of global higher education and the deep inequalities that continue to shape access across regions.
According to the report, global higher education enrolment rose from about 100 million students in 2000 to 269 million in 2024. This means approximately 43 per cent of the global population within the typical university-age bracket of 18 to 24 years is now enrolled in higher education institutions.
Despite the growth, UNESCO warned that major geographical disparities remain. While about 80 per cent of young people in Western Europe and North America are enrolled in higher education, the figure drops sharply to just nine per cent in sub-Saharan Africa.
The report also revealed that international student mobility has expanded dramatically. The number of students studying outside their home countries rose from 2.5 million in 2002 to 7.3 million in 2023 and is projected to hit nine million by 2030.
Within that global movement, Nigeria emerged as the third-largest country of origin for students studying abroad, accounting for five per cent of internationally mobile students worldwide in 2023, placing it on par with Germany.
Only China and India ranked ahead of Nigeria, contributing 37 per cent and 29 per cent respectively to global student mobility.
UNESCO data showed that the number of Nigerian students studying abroad surged by 98 per cent within four years, rising from 71,753 in 2020 to approximately 142,000 in 2023 across 21 major study destinations.
The organisation used the term “outbound student mobility” to describe countries from which international students originate.
As observed, the sharp increase in Nigerians seeking education abroad shows a combination of factors, including demand for internationally recognised qualifications, instability in local university calendars, infrastructure challenges, and the growing globalisation of education.
The report also examined broader trends in global higher education financing and participation.
Meanwhile, orivate institutions now account for roughly one-third of global higher education enrolment, with the highest concentration recorded in Latin America and the Caribbean, where private universities represented 49 per cent of enrolment in 2023.
In countries such as Brazil, Chile, Japan, and South Korea, four out of every five students attend private higher education institutions.
UNESCO further noted that only one-third of countries globally provide legally mandated tuition-free public higher education.
On gender representation, the report found that women now outnumber men in higher education globally. In 2024, there were 114 women enrolled for every 100 men worldwide, although disparities remain pronounced in some regions, particularly sub-Saharan Africa, where gender parity has yet to be achieved.
