Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa
MDG: Sub-saharan Africa: Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity was 0.84 GPIA in 2024. ▲ Rising
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa, 1985–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.
Analysis
In 2024, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa stood at 0.84 GPIA. That is the highest value across all 40 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.2% on the previous year and up 7.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa peaked at 0.84 GPIA in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.64 GPIA, in 1985.
MDG: Sub-saharan Africa ranks 134th of 203 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 40 years of available data.
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 0.64 GPIA | — |
| 1986 | 0.64 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 0.65 GPIA | +1.6% |
| 1988 | 0.65 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 0.66 GPIA | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 0.66 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 0.67 GPIA | +1.5% |
| 1992 | 0.67 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 0.68 GPIA | +1.5% |
| 1994 | 0.68 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 0.69 GPIA | +1.5% |
| 1996 | 0.7 GPIA | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 0.72 GPIA | +2.9% |
| 1998 | 0.72 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.72 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.71 GPIA | -1.4% |
| 2001 | 0.72 GPIA | +1.4% |
| 2002 | 0.71 GPIA | -1.4% |
| 2003 | 0.72 GPIA | +1.4% |
| 2004 | 0.72 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 0.72 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 0.72 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 0.73 GPIA | +1.4% |
| 2008 | 0.73 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 0.74 GPIA | +1.4% |
| 2010 | 0.75 GPIA | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 0.76 GPIA | +1.3% |
| 2012 | 0.77 GPIA | +1.3% |
| 2013 | 0.78 GPIA | +1.3% |
| 2014 | 0.78 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 0.79 GPIA | +1.3% |
| 2016 | 0.8 GPIA | +1.3% |
| 2017 | 0.8 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 0.81 GPIA | +1.3% |
| 2019 | 0.82 GPIA | +1.2% |
| 2020 | 0.82 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 0.83 GPIA | +1.2% |
| 2022 | 0.83 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 0.83 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 0.84 GPIA | +1.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0.648 GPIA | 0.64 GPIA | 0.66 GPIA | 5 |
| 1990s | 0.691 GPIA | 0.66 GPIA | 0.72 GPIA | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.722 GPIA | 0.71 GPIA | 0.74 GPIA | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.786 GPIA | 0.75 GPIA | 0.82 GPIA | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.83 GPIA | 0.82 GPIA | 0.84 GPIA | 5 |
More education data for MDG: Sub-saharan Africa
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 5.90 million (2021)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 39.14 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 1.62 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 42.42 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 26.38 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 1.59 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number) 3.52 % change on previous year (2021)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 3.88 % change on previous year (2021)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.60 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa was 0.84 GPIA in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity recorded in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.84 GPIA in 2024.
- What is the lowest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity recorded in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.64 GPIA in 1985.
- How does MDG: Sub-saharan Africa rank for adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity?
- MDG: Sub-saharan Africa ranks 134th out of 203 groups with data for 2024.
- Is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity rising or falling in MDG: Sub-saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this MDG: Sub-saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity index (GPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 40 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release