Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)
ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104): Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female was 14.10 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
14.10 million
Change on year
down 0.3%
Rank
129th
of 203 groups
All-time high
14.38 million
in 2017
All-time low
10.66 million
in 1990
Years of data
36
1989–2024
Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104), 1989–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) is 14.10 million, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of down 0.3% on the previous year and up 9.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) peaked at 14.38 million in 2017 and was at its lowest, 10.66 million, in 1990.
ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) ranks 129th of 203 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104), year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 10.87 million | — |
| 1990 | 10.66 million | -1.9% |
| 1991 | 11.37 million | +6.6% |
| 1992 | 11.63 million | +2.3% |
| 1993 | 11.72 million | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 11.76 million | +0.3% |
| 1995 | 11.86 million | +0.8% |
| 1996 | 12.00 million | +1.2% |
| 1997 | 12.13 million | +1.1% |
| 1998 | 12.16 million | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 12.13 million | -0.3% |
| 2000 | 12.17 million | +0.3% |
| 2001 | 12.18 million | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 11.95 million | -1.9% |
| 2003 | 12.06 million | +0.9% |
| 2004 | 12.00 million | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 12.20 million | +1.7% |
| 2006 | 12.67 million | +3.8% |
| 2007 | 13.29 million | +4.9% |
| 2008 | 13.62 million | +2.5% |
| 2009 | 13.16 million | -3.4% |
| 2010 | 12.93 million | -1.7% |
| 2011 | 12.90 million | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 12.85 million | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 12.87 million | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 12.83 million | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 12.92 million | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 12.88 million | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 14.38 million | +11.7% |
| 2018 | 13.85 million | -3.7% |
| 2019 | 12.17 million | -12.1% |
| 2020 | 12.64 million | +3.9% |
| 2021 | 14.11 million | +11.6% |
| 2022 | 14.12 million | +0.1% |
| 2023 | 14.14 million | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 14.10 million | -0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 10.87 million | 10.87 million | 10.87 million | 1 |
| 1990s | 11.74 million | 10.66 million | 12.16 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 12.53 million | 11.95 million | 13.62 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.06 million | 12.17 million | 14.38 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.82 million | 12.64 million | 14.14 million | 5 |
More education data for ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 7.02 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 0.2683 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 2.24 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 2.46 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 5.01 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.9 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 7.14 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 2.08 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, male (number), annual growth rate 0.6859 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 14.16 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)?
- Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) was 14.10 million in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female recorded in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)?
- The highest recorded value was 14.38 million in 2017.
- What is the lowest adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female recorded in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.66 million in 1990.
- How does ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) rank for adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female?
- ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) ranks 129th out of 203 groups with data for 2024.
- Is adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female rising or falling in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release