Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia
SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia: Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female was 76.3% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia, 1976–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia stood at 76.3%. That is the highest value across all 49 years on record.
The figure is up 0.5% on the previous year and up 5.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia peaked at 76.3% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 37.3%, in 1976.
That places SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia 98th 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 49 years of available data.
Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 37.3% | — |
| 1977 | 37.7% | +1.1% |
| 1978 | 38.2% | +1.4% |
| 1979 | 38.1% | -0.3% |
| 1980 | 38.7% | +1.6% |
| 1981 | 39.3% | +1.5% |
| 1982 | 40.0% | +1.9% |
| 1983 | 40.5% | +1.1% |
| 1984 | 43.8% | +8.4% |
| 1985 | 44.5% | +1.4% |
| 1986 | 45.1% | +1.4% |
| 1987 | 45.8% | +1.5% |
| 1988 | 46.6% | +1.9% |
| 1989 | 47.1% | +1.0% |
| 1990 | 48.0% | +1.9% |
| 1991 | 48.7% | +1.6% |
| 1992 | 49.6% | +1.7% |
| 1993 | 50.3% | +1.5% |
| 1994 | 51.1% | +1.5% |
| 1995 | 51.8% | +1.5% |
| 1996 | 52.9% | +1.9% |
| 1997 | 53.9% | +2.0% |
| 1998 | 55.0% | +2.0% |
| 1999 | 56.0% | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 56.8% | +1.3% |
| 2001 | 58.0% | +2.2% |
| 2002 | 59.3% | +2.2% |
| 2003 | 62.0% | +4.6% |
| 2004 | 63.1% | +1.8% |
| 2005 | 64.2% | +1.7% |
| 2006 | 62.9% | -2.0% |
| 2007 | 63.6% | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 64.8% | +1.8% |
| 2009 | 66.8% | +3.1% |
| 2010 | 68.2% | +2.1% |
| 2011 | 70.9% | +3.9% |
| 2012 | 71.6% | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 72.7% | +1.5% |
| 2014 | 72.7% | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 73.6% | +1.3% |
| 2016 | 73.0% | -0.8% |
| 2017 | 73.7% | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 74.1% | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 74.5% | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 74.9% | +0.5% |
| 2021 | 75.2% | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 75.7% | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 76.0% | +0.4% |
| 2024 | 76.3% | +0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 37.8% | 37.3% | 38.2% | 4 |
| 1980s | 43.1% | 38.7% | 47.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 51.7% | 48.0% | 56.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 62.1% | 56.8% | 66.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 72.5% | 68.2% | 74.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 75.6% | 74.9% | 76.3% | 5 |
More education data for SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia
- Enrolment in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 32.09 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 0.2663 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4.45 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 9.09 million (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 61.67 million (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth 0.5703 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 29.58 million (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), annual growth rate 0.7875 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.19 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 26.40 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia?
- Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia was 76.3% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female recorded in SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia?
- The highest recorded value was 76.3% in 2024.
- What is the lowest literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female recorded in SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia?
- The lowest recorded value was 37.3% in 1976.
- How does SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia rank for literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female?
- SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia ranks 98th out of 203 groups with data for 2024.
- Is literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female rising or falling in SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this SDG: Northern Africa and Western Asia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release