Literacy rate, youth male in Least developed countries
Least developed countries: Literacy rate, youth male was 82.1% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Literacy rate, youth male in Least developed countries, 1981–2024
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in % of males ages 15-24.
Analysis
Least developed countries recorded 82.1% for literacy rate, youth male in 2024. That is the highest value across all 44 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and up 3.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rate, youth male in Least developed countries peaked at 82.1% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 60.4%, in 1981.
That places Least developed countries 33rd out of 40 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 44 years of available data.
Literacy rate, youth male in Least developed countries, year by year
| Year | % of males ages 15-24 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 60.4% | — |
| 1982 | 60.6% | +0.4% |
| 1983 | 60.7% | +0.2% |
| 1984 | 60.9% | +0.3% |
| 1985 | 61.2% | +0.4% |
| 1986 | 61.3% | +0.3% |
| 1987 | 61.6% | +0.5% |
| 1988 | 63.6% | +3.1% |
| 1989 | 64.0% | +0.7% |
| 1990 | 64.3% | +0.4% |
| 1991 | 64.1% | -0.3% |
| 1992 | 64.0% | -0.2% |
| 1993 | 64.1% | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 64.6% | +0.7% |
| 1995 | 65.3% | +1.1% |
| 1996 | 65.4% | +0.2% |
| 1997 | 65.6% | +0.3% |
| 1998 | 67.3% | +2.6% |
| 1999 | 68.3% | +1.5% |
| 2000 | 68.5% | +0.2% |
| 2001 | 68.8% | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 71.3% | +3.7% |
| 2003 | 71.7% | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 72.2% | +0.8% |
| 2005 | 72.4% | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 68.4% | -5.5% |
| 2007 | 69.1% | +1.0% |
| 2008 | 69.3% | +0.4% |
| 2009 | 70.1% | +1.1% |
| 2010 | 74.5% | +6.3% |
| 2011 | 75.9% | +1.8% |
| 2012 | 76.4% | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 79.0% | +3.4% |
| 2014 | 79.2% | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 80.0% | +1.0% |
| 2016 | 80.9% | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 81.5% | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 81.5% | -0.0% |
| 2019 | 81.6% | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 81.5% | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 81.8% | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 81.7% | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 81.9% | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 82.1% | +0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 61.6% | 60.4% | 64.0% | 9 |
| 1990s | 65.3% | 64.0% | 68.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 70.2% | 68.4% | 72.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 79.0% | 74.5% | 81.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 81.8% | 81.5% | 82.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Least developed countries
More education data for Least developed countries
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 4.43 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 75.92 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 171.01 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.04 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1441 units per person (2024)
- Population ages 0-14 38.4% (2025)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 57.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rate, youth male in Least developed countries?
- Literacy rate, youth male in Least developed countries was 82.1% in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest literacy rate, youth male recorded in Least developed countries?
- The highest recorded value was 82.1% in 2024.
- What is the lowest literacy rate, youth male recorded in Least developed countries?
- The lowest recorded value was 60.4% in 1981.
- How does Least developed countries rank for literacy rate, youth male?
- Least developed countries ranks 33rd out of 40 groups with data for 2024.
- Is literacy rate, youth male rising or falling in Least developed countries?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Least developed countries data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Literacy rate, youth male (% of males ages 15-24). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Youth literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15-24 who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life.