Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in MDG: Caribbean
MDG: Caribbean: Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes was 87.7% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
87.7%
Change on year
down 0.1%
Rank
82nd
of 203 groups
All-time high
88.3%
in 2016
All-time low
77.3%
in 1975
Years of data
49
1975–2023
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in MDG: Caribbean, 1975–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in MDG: Caribbean stood at 87.7%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.1% on the previous year and up 0.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in MDG: Caribbean peaked at 88.3% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 77.3%, in 1975.
That places MDG: Caribbean 82nd out of 203 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 49 years of available data.
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in MDG: Caribbean, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 77.3% | — |
| 1976 | 77.3% | +0.1% |
| 1977 | 77.5% | +0.3% |
| 1978 | 77.9% | +0.5% |
| 1979 | 78.2% | +0.5% |
| 1980 | 78.6% | +0.5% |
| 1981 | 78.9% | +0.4% |
| 1982 | 79.3% | +0.5% |
| 1983 | 79.7% | +0.5% |
| 1984 | 80.1% | +0.5% |
| 1985 | 80.5% | +0.5% |
| 1986 | 80.8% | +0.5% |
| 1987 | 81.3% | +0.5% |
| 1988 | 81.6% | +0.5% |
| 1989 | 82.0% | +0.5% |
| 1990 | 82.4% | +0.5% |
| 1991 | 82.7% | +0.4% |
| 1992 | 83.2% | +0.6% |
| 1993 | 83.6% | +0.5% |
| 1994 | 84.1% | +0.5% |
| 1995 | 84.5% | +0.5% |
| 1996 | 85.0% | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 85.4% | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 85.7% | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 86.0% | +0.3% |
| 2000 | 86.2% | +0.3% |
| 2001 | 86.5% | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 86.8% | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 87.1% | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 87.4% | +0.3% |
| 2005 | 87.7% | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 85.3% | -2.7% |
| 2007 | 85.6% | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 85.8% | +0.3% |
| 2009 | 86.1% | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 86.4% | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 86.7% | +0.4% |
| 2012 | 86.9% | +0.2% |
| 2013 | 87.2% | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 87.6% | +0.4% |
| 2015 | 87.8% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 88.3% | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 88.3% | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 88.2% | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 88.2% | -0.0% |
| 2020 | 88.2% | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 88.2% | -0.0% |
| 2022 | 87.8% | -0.4% |
| 2023 | 87.7% | -0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 77.6% | 77.3% | 78.2% | 5 |
| 1980s | 80.3% | 78.6% | 82.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 84.2% | 82.4% | 86.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 86.5% | 85.3% | 87.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 87.6% | 86.4% | 88.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 88.0% | 87.7% | 88.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near MDG: Caribbean
- 79 Pakistan 58.9% compare
- 80 Benin 51.4% compare
- 81 Senegal 50.4% compare
- 82 Côte d'Ivoire 50.0% compare
- 83 Sierra Leone 43.6% compare
- 84 Burkina Faso 41.6% compare
- 85 Guinea 39.6% compare
More education data for MDG: Caribbean
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) -5.05 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.44 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate -0.2683 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.40 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate -0.6728 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1.45 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual -0.4594 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 1.15 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 222,098 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 727,761 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in MDG: Caribbean?
- Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes in MDG: Caribbean was 87.7% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes recorded in MDG: Caribbean?
- The highest recorded value was 88.3% in 2016.
- What is the lowest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes recorded in MDG: Caribbean?
- The lowest recorded value was 77.3% in 1975.
- How does MDG: Caribbean rank for adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes?
- MDG: Caribbean ranks 82nd out of 203 groups with data for 2023.
- Is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, both sexes rising or falling in MDG: Caribbean?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this MDG: Caribbean 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release