Literacy rate, adult male in Ghana
Ghana: Literacy rate, adult male was 81.3% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Literacy rate, adult male in Ghana, 2000–2021
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in % of males ages 15 and above.
Analysis
Ghana recorded 81.3% for literacy rate, adult male in 2021. That is the highest value across all 5 years on record.
That represents a change of up 3.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rate, adult male in Ghana peaked at 81.3% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 66.3%, in 2000.
That places Ghana 65th out of 88 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.
Literacy rate, adult male in Ghana, year by year
| Year | % of males ages 15 and above | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 66.3% | — |
| 2010 | 78.3% | +18.1% |
| 2015 | 70.1% | -10.5% |
| 2017 | 74.9% | +6.8% |
| 2021 | 81.3% | +8.6% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 81.3% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 83.7%, 97% of the median. (30 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 81.3% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 79.2%, 1.0× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 66.3% | 66.3% | 66.3% | 1 |
| 2010s | 74.5% | 70.1% | 78.3% | 3 |
| 2020s | 81.3% | 81.3% | 81.3% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
More education data for Ghana
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 174,414 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 39,902 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 949,095 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 913,117 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.33 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.98 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.6567 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1448 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rate, adult male in Ghana?
- Literacy rate, adult male in Ghana was 81.3% in 2021, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest literacy rate, adult male recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 81.3% in 2021.
- What is the lowest literacy rate, adult male recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 66.3% in 2000.
- How does Ghana rank for literacy rate, adult male?
- Ghana ranks 65th out of 88 countries with data for 2021.
- Is literacy rate, adult male rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Literacy rate, adult male (% of males ages 15 and above). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 5 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Adult literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life.