Literacy in Ghana
Ghana: Literacy was 76.49 in 2021. ▲ Rising
Latest (2021)
76.49
World rank
64th
of 89 countries
All-time high
76.49
in 2021
All-time low
57.9
in 2000
Years of data
5
2000–2021
Literacy in Ghana, 2000–2021
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Ghana recorded 76.49 for literacy in 2021. That is the highest value across all 5 years on record.
That represents a change of up 7.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy in Ghana peaked at 76.49 in 2021 and was at its lowest, 57.9, in 2000.
Ghana ranks 64th of 89 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Literacy in Ghana, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 57.9 | — |
| 2010 | 71.5 | +23.5% |
| 2015 | 60.2 | -15.8% |
| 2017 | 64.49 | +7.1% |
| 2021 | 76.49 | +18.6% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 76.49 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 78.16, 98% of the median. (31 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 76.49 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 70.87, 1.1× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 57.9 | 57.9 | 57.9 | 1 |
| 2010s | 65.4 | 60.2 | 71.5 | 3 |
| 2020s | 76.49 | 76.49 | 76.49 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
More education data for Ghana
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 95.93 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 95.23 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 174,414 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 39,902 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 949,095 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 913,117 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.33 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.98 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.6567 % change on previous year (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy in Ghana?
- Literacy in Ghana was 76.49 in 2021, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest literacy recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 76.49 in 2021.
- What is the lowest literacy recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 57.9 in 2000.
- How does Ghana rank for literacy?
- Ghana ranks 64th out of 89 countries with data for 2021.
- Is literacy rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Literacy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 5 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).