Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes in UNICEF: South Asia
UNICEF: South Asia: Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes was 43.4% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes in UNICEF: South Asia, 1975–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes in UNICEF: South Asia is 43.4%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 50 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 10.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes in UNICEF: South Asia peaked at 43.4% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 20.9%, in 1986.
UNICEF: South Asia ranks 138th of 201 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 50 years of available data.
Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes in UNICEF: South Asia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 21.2% | — |
| 1976 | 21.2% | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 21.1% | -0.1% |
| 1978 | 21.1% | -0.1% |
| 1979 | 21.1% | -0.1% |
| 1980 | 21.1% | -0.1% |
| 1981 | 21.0% | -0.1% |
| 1982 | 21.0% | -0.1% |
| 1983 | 21.0% | -0.1% |
| 1984 | 21.0% | -0.1% |
| 1985 | 20.9% | -0.1% |
| 1986 | 20.9% | -0.1% |
| 1987 | 21.7% | +4.0% |
| 1988 | 25.1% | +15.4% |
| 1989 | 25.4% | +1.2% |
| 1990 | 25.6% | +1.0% |
| 1991 | 25.8% | +0.7% |
| 1992 | 25.8% | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 25.8% | -0.2% |
| 1994 | 25.7% | -0.5% |
| 1995 | 25.7% | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 25.8% | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 26.2% | +1.5% |
| 1998 | 32.8% | +25.3% |
| 1999 | 33.0% | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 33.2% | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 33.5% | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 33.6% | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 33.6% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 33.7% | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 32.4% | -3.8% |
| 2006 | 32.1% | -0.9% |
| 2007 | 32.4% | +0.9% |
| 2008 | 32.7% | +0.9% |
| 2009 | 32.9% | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 38.1% | +15.6% |
| 2011 | 38.4% | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 38.0% | -0.9% |
| 2013 | 38.5% | +1.3% |
| 2014 | 39.1% | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 39.9% | +2.1% |
| 2016 | 41.2% | +3.3% |
| 2017 | 41.8% | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 43.0% | +2.9% |
| 2019 | 40.6% | -5.7% |
| 2020 | 41.0% | +1.2% |
| 2021 | 41.6% | +1.4% |
| 2022 | 42.5% | +2.1% |
| 2023 | 43.0% | +1.1% |
| 2024 | 43.4% | +1.0% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes in UNICEF: South Asia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | +25.3% | 26.2% | 32.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 21.1% | 21.1% | 21.2% | 5 |
| 1980s | 21.9% | 20.9% | 25.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 27.2% | 25.6% | 33.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 33.0% | 32.1% | 33.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 39.9% | 38.0% | 43.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 42.3% | 41.0% | 43.4% | 5 |
More education data for UNICEF: South Asia
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 7.86 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, both sexes (number), annual growth -0.6662 % change on previous year (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 6.43 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth rate 2.87 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 84.88 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 0.1267 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 91.07 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate -1.39 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 53.53 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 26.43 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes in UNICEF: South Asia?
- Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes in UNICEF: South Asia was 43.4% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes recorded in UNICEF: South Asia?
- The highest recorded value was 43.4% in 2024.
- What is the lowest elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes recorded in UNICEF: South Asia?
- The lowest recorded value was 20.9% in 1986.
- How does UNICEF: South Asia rank for elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes?
- UNICEF: South Asia ranks 138th out of 201 groups with data for 2024.
- Is elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes rising or falling in UNICEF: South Asia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this UNICEF: South Asia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 50 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release