Literacy rates among adults in Burundi
Burundi: Literacy rates among adults was 71.3% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Literacy rates among adults in Burundi, 1979–2020
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Burundi recorded 71.3% for literacy rates among adults in 2020. That is the highest value across all 8 years on record.
That represents a change of up 4.3% on the previous year and up 48.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rates among adults in Burundi peaked at 71.3% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 22.5%, in 1979.
That places Burundi 70th out of 89 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 22.5% | 22.5% | 22.5% | 1 |
| 1990s | 37.4% | 37.4% | 37.4% | 1 |
| 2000s | 53.7% | 48.1% | 59.3% | 2 |
| 2010s | 65.1% | 61.3% | 68.4% | 3 |
| 2020s | 71.3% | 71.3% | 71.3% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Burundi
More education data for Burundi
- Duration of pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 53.5% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 44.0% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 100.6% (2025)
- Primary education, teachers 43,226 (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling 4.79 live births per woman (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 101.6% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rates among adults in Burundi?
- Literacy rates among adults in Burundi was 71.3% in 2020, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest literacy rates among adults recorded in Burundi?
- The highest recorded value was 71.3% in 2020.
- What is the lowest literacy rates among adults recorded in Burundi?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.5% in 1979.
- How does Burundi rank for literacy rates among adults?
- Burundi ranks 70th out of 89 countries with data for 2020.
- Is literacy rates among adults rising or falling in Burundi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 48.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Burundi data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Literacy rates among adults. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of the population aged 15 years and older who can read and write.