Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)

Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income): Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male was 620,351 number in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
620,351 number
Change on year
down 3.0%
Rank
36th
of 39 groups
All-time high
3.24 million number
in 1983
All-time low
620,351 number
in 2019
Years of data
37
1983–2019

Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), 1983–2019

1.0M2.0M3.0M1983200120191983: 3.2M number1984: 2.8M number1985: 2.7M number1986: 2.7M number1987: 2.6M number1988: 2.6M number1989: 2.6M number1990: 2.5M number1991: 2.5M number1992: 2.5M number1993: 2.4M number1994: 2.4M number1995: 2.3M number1996: 2.3M number1997: 2.2M number1998: 2.1M number1999: 2.1M number2000: 1.8M number2001: 1.7M number2002: 1.7M number2003: 1.6M number2004: 1.6M number2005: 1.4M number2006: 1.4M number2007: 1.4M number2008: 1.4M number2009: 1.2M number2010: 1.0M number2011: 858.7k number2012: 783.3k number2013: 760.8k number2014: 737.5k number2015: 720.4k number2016: 653.8k number2017: 665.7k number2018: 639.7k number2019: 620.4k number

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.

Analysis

Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) recorded 620,351 number for adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 37 years on record.

That represents a change of down 3.0% on the previous year and down 50.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) peaked at 3.24 million number in 1983 and was at its lowest, 620,351 number, in 2019.

Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) ranks 36th of 39 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 37 years of available data.

Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), year by year

Annual values for Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male (number) in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), 1983 to 2019.
Year number Change
1983 3.24 million number
1984 2.77 million number -14.7%
1985 2.68 million number -3.2%
1986 2.69 million number +0.4%
1987 2.65 million number -1.5%
1988 2.62 million number -0.9%
1989 2.59 million number -1.4%
1990 2.49 million number -4.0%
1991 2.51 million number +0.8%
1992 2.46 million number -1.9%
1993 2.41 million number -1.8%
1994 2.37 million number -1.8%
1995 2.32 million number -1.9%
1996 2.25 million number -3.0%
1997 2.22 million number -1.5%
1998 2.11 million number -5.0%
1999 2.07 million number -2.1%
2000 1.76 million number -14.9%
2001 1.71 million number -2.8%
2002 1.67 million number -2.3%
2003 1.64 million number -1.7%
2004 1.57 million number -4.3%
2005 1.37 million number -12.6%
2006 1.41 million number +2.8%
2007 1.37 million number -2.9%
2008 1.37 million number -0.0%
2009 1.25 million number -9.0%
2010 1.02 million number -18.2%
2011 858,663 number -15.8%
2012 783,252 number -8.8%
2013 760,824 number -2.9%
2014 737,457 number -3.1%
2015 720,357 number -2.3%
2016 653,772 number -9.2%
2017 665,705 number +1.8%
2018 639,681 number -3.9%
2019 620,351 number -3.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 2.75 million number 2.59 million number 3.24 million number 7
1990s 2.32 million number 2.07 million number 2.51 million number 10
2000s 1.51 million number 1.25 million number 1.76 million number 10
2010s 745,977 number 620,351 number 1.02 million number 10

Countries ranked near Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)

  1. 33 Burundi 683,416 number compare
  2. 34 Cambodia 683,262 number compare
  3. 35 Philippines 646,584 number compare
  4. 36 Central African Republic 642,926 number compare
  5. 37 Guatemala 640,073 number compare
  6. 38 Tunisia 576,320 number compare
  7. 39 Sri Lanka 549,576 number compare

See the full ranking of 126 places →

More education data for Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)

All data for Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) →

Frequently asked questions

What is adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) was 620,351 number in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male recorded in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
The highest recorded value was 3.24 million number in 1983.
What is the lowest adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male recorded in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
The lowest recorded value was 620,351 number in 2019.
How does Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) rank for adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male?
Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) ranks 36th out of 39 groups with data for 2019.
Is adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male rising or falling in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
Over the last ten years it is down 50.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income). Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 16 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/adult-illiterate-population-15-years-male-number/europe-and-central-asia-excluding-high-income/

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About this data

Indicator
Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, male (number)
Unit
number
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
126 places, 2,271 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

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