Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Malawi
Malawi: Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female was 15.9% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Latest (2020)
15.9%
Change on year
down 40.6%
World rank
74th
of 90 countries
All-time high
26.8%
in 2018
All-time low
8.2%
in 1987
Years of data
5
1987–2020
Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Malawi, 1987–2020
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 15.9% for elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in 2020.
That represents a change of down 40.6% on the previous year and down 22.6% over five years.
Over the whole period, elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Malawi peaked at 26.8% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 8.2%, in 1987.
Malawi ranks 74th of 90 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 8.2% | — |
| 1998 | 21.3% | +161.7% |
| 2017 | 20.6% | -3.4% |
| 2018 | 26.8% | +30.2% |
| 2020 | 15.9% | -40.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 8.2% | 8.2% | 8.2% | 1 |
| 1990s | 21.3% | 21.3% | 21.3% | 1 |
| 2010s | 23.7% | 20.6% | 26.8% | 2 |
| 2020s | 15.9% | 15.9% | 15.9% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More education data for Malawi
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 16.86 % change on previous year (2022)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 41,351 (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 46,483 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 40,807 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 21.25 % change on previous year (2022)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 54,184 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number) 13.94 % change on previous year (2022)
- Theoretical duration of primary education (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of pre-primary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (pre-primary to post-secondary non) 0.0494 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Malawi?
- Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Malawi was 15.9% in 2020, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 26.8% in 2018.
- What is the lowest elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.2% in 1987.
- How does Malawi rank for elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female?
- Malawi ranks 74th out of 90 countries with data for 2020.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 5 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release