Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500)
ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500): Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female was 37.15 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
37.15 million
Change on year
up 0.4%
Rank
105th
of 203 groups
All-time high
37.15 million
in 2024
All-time low
32.83 million
in 1990
Years of data
36
1989–2024
Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500), 1989–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500) recorded 37.15 million for adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in 2024. That is the highest value across all 36 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.4% on the previous year and up 9.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500) peaked at 37.15 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 32.83 million, in 1990.
ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500) ranks 105th 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 ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500), year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 33.44 million | — |
| 1990 | 32.83 million | -1.8% |
| 1991 | 32.91 million | +0.2% |
| 1992 | 33.15 million | +0.7% |
| 1993 | 33.94 million | +2.4% |
| 1994 | 34.25 million | +0.9% |
| 1995 | 34.48 million | +0.7% |
| 1996 | 34.52 million | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 34.49 million | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 34.46 million | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 34.45 million | -0.0% |
| 2000 | 34.48 million | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 34.38 million | -0.3% |
| 2002 | 34.30 million | -0.3% |
| 2003 | 33.05 million | -3.6% |
| 2004 | 32.96 million | -0.3% |
| 2005 | 33.13 million | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 35.57 million | +7.4% |
| 2007 | 35.80 million | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 35.79 million | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 35.73 million | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 35.84 million | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 34.38 million | -4.1% |
| 2012 | 34.14 million | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 33.37 million | -2.3% |
| 2014 | 34.06 million | +2.1% |
| 2015 | 33.72 million | -1.0% |
| 2016 | 35.81 million | +6.2% |
| 2017 | 35.53 million | -0.8% |
| 2018 | 35.82 million | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 36.11 million | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 36.38 million | +0.8% |
| 2021 | 36.54 million | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 36.70 million | +0.4% |
| 2023 | 37.01 million | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 37.15 million | +0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 33.44 million | 33.44 million | 33.44 million | 1 |
| 1990s | 33.95 million | 32.83 million | 34.52 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 34.52 million | 32.96 million | 35.80 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 34.88 million | 33.37 million | 36.11 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 36.76 million | 36.38 million | 37.15 million | 5 |
More education data for ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.52 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 1.01 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 17.81 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 0.3069 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual -0.6186 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 12.84 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 7.83 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 7.88 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number) 7.78 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 6.43 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500)?
- Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500) was 37.15 million in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female recorded in ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500)?
- The highest recorded value was 37.15 million in 2024.
- What is the lowest adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female recorded in ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500)?
- The lowest recorded value was 32.83 million in 1990.
- How does ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500) rank for adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female?
- ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500) ranks 105th out of 203 groups with data for 2024.
- Is adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female rising or falling in ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this ESCWA: All Countries (unsdcode:98500) 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