Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, rural, female (number) by country
February 2026 Data Release
Countries reporting
40
Highest
27.93 million
Pakistan
Lowest
1
Uzbekistan
Median
426,094
Years covered
35
1990–2024
Data points
374
What the numbers show
Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, rural, female (number) is currently reported for 40 countries. The highest value is 27.93 million in Pakistan; the lowest is 1 in Uzbekistan.
The median across all reporting countries is 426,094, and the mean is 1.79 million.
Over the past decade 14 countries rose and 26 fell. The largest increase was in Jordan (up 312.0%), and the largest decrease in Uzbekistan (down 99.9%).
Adult illiterate population, 15+ years, rural, female: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pakistan | 27.93 million | 2019 | up 6.6% | rising |
| 2 | Bangladesh | 7.26 million | 2022 | down 58.0% | falling |
| 3 | Indonesia | 3.76 million | 2020 | down 43.4% | falling |
| 4 | Mozambique | 3.62 million | 2020 | up 8.7% | rising |
| 5 | Burkina Faso | 3.56 million | 2019 | up 23.2% | rising |
| 6 | Mali | 3.14 million | 2018 | up 41.2% | rising |
| 7 | Uganda | 3.08 million | 2014 | up 23.0% | rising |
| 8 | Morocco | 3.06 million | 2014 | down 14.1% | falling |
| 9 | Iran, Islamic Republic of | 2.70 million | 2016 | down 9.2% | falling |
| 10 | Brazil | 1.68 million | 2018 | down 13.7% | falling |
| 11 | Senegal | 1.57 million | 2017 | up 4.6% | rising |
| 12 | Thailand | 1.52 million | 2018 | up 166.2% | rising |
| 13 | South Africa | 1.31 million | 2024 | up 33.2% | falling |
| 14 | Mexico | 1.26 million | 2020 | down 22.2% | falling |
| 15 | Togo | 834,815 | 2019 | up 14.4% | rising |
| 16 | Guatemala | 791,179 | 2018 | down 5.6% | falling |
| 17 | Cambodia | 684,099 | 2019 | down 49.4% | falling |
| 18 | Sri Lanka | 663,785 | 2024 | up 3.5% | falling |
| 19 | Türkiye | 509,349 | 2015 | down 80.0% | volatile |
| 20 | Peru | 456,459 | 2020 | down 19.9% | falling |
| 21 | Philippines | 395,728 | 2020 | down 51.3% | falling |
| 22 | Colombia | 340,160 | 2020 | down 25.0% | falling |
| 23 | Honduras | 247,048 | 2019 | down 11.3% | falling |
| 24 | Malaysia | 226,867 | 2022 | down 51.0% | falling |
| 25 | Bolivia, Plurinational State of | 195,423 | 2023 | up 6.2% | falling |
| 26 | Ecuador | 187,530 | 2022 | down 42.2% | falling |
| 27 | El Salvador | 136,857 | 2024 | down 29.7% | falling |
| 28 | Spain | 97,270 | 2020 | down 48.6% | falling |
| 29 | Chile | 73,275 | 2017 | down 0.6% | falling |
| 30 | Paraguay | 72,541 | 2020 | down 15.2% | flat |
| 31 | Dominican Republic | 69,809 | 2024 | down 52.6% | falling |
| 32 | Jordan | 40,529 | 2024 | up 312.0% | volatile |
| 33 | Kuwait | 40,246 | 2018 | up 13.1% | rising |
| 34 | Oman | 21,145 | 2022 | down 56.7% | volatile |
| 35 | Palestine, State of | 11,467 | 2022 | down 38.3% | volatile |
| 36 | Azerbaijan | 7,080 | 2023 | up 55.7% | volatile |
| 37 | Georgia | 4,847 | 2024 | down 23.7% | falling |
| 38 | Armenia | 2,081 | 2020 | down 23.4% | falling |
| 39 | Uruguay | 817 | 2022 | down 37.0% | falling |
| 40 | Uzbekistan | 1 | 2022 | down 99.9% | volatile |
About this data
February 2026 Data Release