Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in Nigeria

Nigeria: Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female was 25.86 million number in 2018. ▲ Rising

Latest (2018)
25.86 million number
World rank
4th
of 87 countries
All-time high
25.86 million number
in 2018
All-time low
14.27 million number
in 2006
Years of data
5
1991–2018

Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in Nigeria, 1991–2018

010.0M20.0M30.0M1991200420181991: 15.2M number2003: 21.0M number2006: 14.3M number2008: 24.6M number2018: 25.9M number

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.

Analysis

Nigeria recorded 25.86 million number for adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in 2018. That is the highest value across all 5 years on record.

That represents a change of up 5.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in Nigeria peaked at 25.86 million number in 2018 and was at its lowest, 14.27 million number, in 2006.

That places Nigeria 4th out of 87 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the top 10%.

Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in Nigeria, year by year

Annual values for Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female (number) in Nigeria, 1991 to 2018.
Year number Change
1991 15.18 million number
2003 21.01 million number +38.5%
2006 14.27 million number -32.1%
2008 24.58 million number +72.3%
2018 25.86 million number +5.2%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 15.18 million number 15.18 million number 15.18 million number 1
2000s 19.96 million number 14.27 million number 24.58 million number 3
2010s 25.86 million number 25.86 million number 25.86 million number 1

Countries ranked near Nigeria

  1. 1 India 162.78 million number compare
  2. 2 Pakistan 35.03 million number compare
  3. 3 China 27.90 million number compare
  4. 5 Ethiopia 17.51 million number compare
  5. 6 Bangladesh 16.51 million number compare
  6. 7 Egypt 11.01 million number compare

See the full ranking of 126 places →

More education data for Nigeria

All data for Nigeria →

Frequently asked questions

What is adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in Nigeria?
Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in Nigeria was 25.86 million number in 2018, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female recorded in Nigeria?
The highest recorded value was 25.86 million number in 2018.
What is the lowest adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female recorded in Nigeria?
The lowest recorded value was 14.27 million number in 2006.
How does Nigeria rank for adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female?
Nigeria ranks 4th out of 87 countries with data for 2018.
Is adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female rising or falling in Nigeria?
Over the last ten years it is up 5.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Nigeria 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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Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female in Nigeria. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 03 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/adult-illiterate-population-15-years-female-number/nigeria/

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About this data

Indicator
Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, female (number)
Unit
number
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
126 places, 2,268 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Total number of females over age 15 who cannot both read and write with understanding a short simple statement on their everyday life.