Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)
ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104): Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes was 82.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
82.6%
Change on year
up 0.5%
Rank
99th
of 203 groups
All-time high
83.4%
in 2019
All-time low
62.8%
in 1974
Years of data
51
1974–2024
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104), 1974–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) stood at 82.6%.
That represents a change of up 0.5% on the previous year and up 2.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) peaked at 83.4% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 62.8%, in 1974.
That places ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) 99th out of 203 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 51 years of available data.
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104), year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 62.8% | — |
| 1975 | 62.9% | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 63.2% | +0.6% |
| 1977 | 63.6% | +0.6% |
| 1978 | 64.1% | +0.7% |
| 1979 | 64.4% | +0.5% |
| 1980 | 64.7% | +0.5% |
| 1981 | 65.3% | +0.9% |
| 1982 | 65.8% | +0.7% |
| 1983 | 66.3% | +0.8% |
| 1984 | 66.8% | +0.8% |
| 1985 | 67.4% | +0.8% |
| 1986 | 68.0% | +0.9% |
| 1987 | 68.6% | +0.9% |
| 1988 | 69.1% | +0.8% |
| 1989 | 69.3% | +0.2% |
| 1990 | 69.8% | +0.8% |
| 1991 | 68.8% | -1.4% |
| 1992 | 68.9% | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 69.3% | +0.6% |
| 1994 | 69.7% | +0.6% |
| 1995 | 70.5% | +1.1% |
| 1996 | 70.9% | +0.6% |
| 1997 | 71.5% | +0.7% |
| 1998 | 72.1% | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 73.4% | +1.8% |
| 2000 | 73.9% | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 74.5% | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 76.0% | +2.0% |
| 2003 | 76.3% | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 77.3% | +1.3% |
| 2005 | 77.3% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 76.7% | -0.8% |
| 2007 | 76.1% | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 76.1% | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 77.4% | +1.8% |
| 2010 | 78.6% | +1.5% |
| 2011 | 79.0% | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 79.7% | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 80.2% | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 80.6% | +0.5% |
| 2015 | 80.6% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 81.3% | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 78.6% | -3.3% |
| 2018 | 80.2% | +1.9% |
| 2019 | 83.4% | +4.0% |
| 2020 | 83.3% | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 81.4% | -2.2% |
| 2022 | 81.8% | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 82.1% | +0.4% |
| 2024 | 82.6% | +0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 63.5% | 62.8% | 64.4% | 6 |
| 1980s | 67.1% | 64.7% | 69.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 70.5% | 68.8% | 73.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 76.2% | 73.9% | 77.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 80.2% | 78.6% | 83.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 82.2% | 81.4% | 83.3% | 5 |
More education data for ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 7.02 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 0.2683 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 2.24 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 2.46 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 5.01 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.9 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 7.14 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 2.08 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, male (number), annual growth rate 0.6859 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 14.16 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)?
- Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) was 82.6% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes recorded in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)?
- The highest recorded value was 83.4% in 2019.
- What is the lowest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes recorded in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)?
- The lowest recorded value was 62.8% in 1974.
- How does ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) rank for adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes?
- ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) ranks 99th out of 203 groups with data for 2024.
- Is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes rising or falling in ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this ECA: Southern Africa (unsdcode:98104) data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release