South Africa stands at the brink of benefiting from its demographic dividend, but
faces high school dropout levels. Previous studies have investigated the
determinants of school dropout, yet not contrasted gender-specific differences in
spite of school dropout threatening education levels for both genders and having
wider long term effects at national level. This study aimed to establish if gender
differentials in school dropout among African adolescents in South Africa existed.
Using the 2010 Survey of Activities of Young People (SAYP) data with a sample of
11 288 African adolescents, the study objectives were tested. The study found that
South Africa experiences high levels of school dropout regardless of gender.
However, noteworthy gender differentials exist in characteristics, reasons for and
determinants of school dropout. Therefore, implementation of a gender-based
approach in policies aimed at reducing school dropout in South Africa is of
paramount importance.