Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes in ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501)
ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501): Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes was 77.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes in ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501), 1980–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes in ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501) stood at 77.2%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.5% on the previous year and up 4.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes in ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501) peaked at 77.2% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 42.9%, in 1980.
That places ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501) 117th 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 45 years of available data.
Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes in ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501), year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 42.9% | — |
| 1981 | 43.3% | +1.0% |
| 1982 | 44.1% | +1.8% |
| 1983 | 43.9% | -0.5% |
| 1984 | 44.5% | +1.3% |
| 1985 | 45.0% | +1.2% |
| 1986 | 45.6% | +1.2% |
| 1987 | 46.2% | +1.4% |
| 1988 | 47.1% | +1.9% |
| 1989 | 48.1% | +2.0% |
| 1990 | 49.1% | +2.0% |
| 1991 | 49.9% | +1.7% |
| 1992 | 51.0% | +2.2% |
| 1993 | 52.3% | +2.7% |
| 1994 | 53.3% | +1.8% |
| 1995 | 54.2% | +1.8% |
| 1996 | 55.4% | +2.1% |
| 1997 | 56.6% | +2.2% |
| 1998 | 57.9% | +2.4% |
| 1999 | 59.1% | +2.0% |
| 2000 | 60.2% | +1.9% |
| 2001 | 61.4% | +2.1% |
| 2002 | 62.6% | +2.0% |
| 2003 | 66.0% | +5.3% |
| 2004 | 67.0% | +1.6% |
| 2005 | 67.8% | +1.1% |
| 2006 | 65.3% | -3.6% |
| 2007 | 66.2% | +1.3% |
| 2008 | 67.2% | +1.5% |
| 2009 | 68.7% | +2.2% |
| 2010 | 69.4% | +1.1% |
| 2011 | 71.8% | +3.4% |
| 2012 | 73.0% | +1.6% |
| 2013 | 74.1% | +1.5% |
| 2014 | 74.0% | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 75.2% | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 74.1% | -1.4% |
| 2017 | 74.7% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 75.0% | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 75.2% | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 75.7% | +0.5% |
| 2021 | 75.9% | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 76.4% | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 76.8% | +0.5% |
| 2024 | 77.2% | +0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 45.1% | 42.9% | 48.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 53.9% | 49.1% | 59.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 65.2% | 60.2% | 68.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 73.7% | 69.4% | 75.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 76.4% | 75.7% | 77.2% | 5 |
More education data for ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 14.56 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth rate 2.99 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 19.75 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 2.17 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 21.05 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.69 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 6.33 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 0.6536 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 7.14 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 6.95 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes in ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501)?
- Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes in ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501) was 77.2% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes recorded in ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501)?
- The highest recorded value was 77.2% in 2024.
- What is the lowest literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes recorded in ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501)?
- The lowest recorded value was 42.9% in 1980.
- How does ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501) rank for literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes?
- ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501) ranks 117th out of 203 groups with data for 2024.
- Is literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes rising or falling in ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this ESCWA: Arab Countries (unsdcode:98501) data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release