Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income)
WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income): Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female was 58.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income), 1985–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income) is 58.0%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 40 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and up 13.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income) peaked at 58.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 31.9%, in 1985.
WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income) ranks 169th of 203 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 40 years of available data.
Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income), year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 31.9% | — |
| 1986 | 32.4% | +1.5% |
| 1987 | 33.1% | +2.3% |
| 1988 | 33.8% | +2.2% |
| 1989 | 34.4% | +1.8% |
| 1990 | 35.2% | +2.3% |
| 1991 | 35.6% | +1.1% |
| 1992 | 36.4% | +2.2% |
| 1993 | 37.2% | +2.2% |
| 1994 | 37.9% | +2.0% |
| 1995 | 38.8% | +2.3% |
| 1996 | 39.7% | +2.5% |
| 1997 | 41.0% | +3.1% |
| 1998 | 42.1% | +2.7% |
| 1999 | 43.1% | +2.4% |
| 2000 | 42.2% | -2.1% |
| 2001 | 43.2% | +2.5% |
| 2002 | 43.4% | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 44.3% | +2.1% |
| 2004 | 45.1% | +1.7% |
| 2005 | 44.9% | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 44.0% | -2.1% |
| 2007 | 44.1% | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 44.4% | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 44.9% | +1.1% |
| 2010 | 45.8% | +1.9% |
| 2011 | 47.6% | +4.1% |
| 2012 | 49.0% | +2.9% |
| 2013 | 50.0% | +2.0% |
| 2014 | 50.9% | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 51.7% | +1.6% |
| 2016 | 52.6% | +1.6% |
| 2017 | 53.1% | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 55.5% | +4.6% |
| 2019 | 56.4% | +1.6% |
| 2020 | 56.7% | +0.5% |
| 2021 | 56.7% | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 57.2% | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 57.6% | +0.7% |
| 2024 | 58.0% | +0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 33.1% | 31.9% | 34.4% | 5 |
| 1990s | 38.7% | 35.2% | 43.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 44.0% | 42.2% | 45.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 51.3% | 45.8% | 56.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 57.2% | 56.7% | 58.0% | 5 |
More education data for WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 3.88 % change on previous year (2021)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), gaps filled 39.08 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female (number), annual growth rate 1.55 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 42.34 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.19 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 26.36 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 1.56 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 10.53 million (2021)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 5.90 million (2021)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 4.34 % change on previous year (2021)
All data for WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income) →
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income)?
- Literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female in WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income) was 58.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female recorded in WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income)?
- The highest recorded value was 58.0% in 2024.
- What is the lowest literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female recorded in WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income)?
- The lowest recorded value was 31.9% in 1985.
- How does WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income) rank for literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female?
- WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income) ranks 169th out of 203 groups with data for 2024.
- Is literacy rate, population 25-64 years, female rising or falling in WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this WB: Sub-saharan Africa (excluding High Income) 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