Youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes in Pakistan
Pakistan: Youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes was 84.5% in 2019. ▲ Rising
Youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes in Pakistan, 1981–2019
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes in Pakistan is 84.5%, measured in 2019.
That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and up 0.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes in Pakistan peaked at 86.4% in 2017 and was at its lowest, 58.4%, in 1981.
Pakistan ranks 65th of 72 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes in Pakistan, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 58.4% | — |
| 1998 | 73.3% | +25.5% |
| 2005 | 81.3% | +11.0% |
| 2006 | 83.4% | +2.6% |
| 2007 | 80.7% | -3.2% |
| 2008 | 83.1% | +3.0% |
| 2009 | 83.8% | +0.9% |
| 2010 | 84.0% | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 84.1% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 84.8% | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 84.6% | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 85.8% | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 86.4% | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 83.8% | -3.0% |
| 2019 | 84.5% | +0.9% |
Pakistan compared with similar countries
- Pakistan's 84.5% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 95.9%, 88% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
- Pakistan's 84.5% is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 98.7%, 86% of the median. (12 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes in Pakistan changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | +25.5% | 58.4% | 73.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 58.4% | 58.4% | 58.4% | 1 |
| 1990s | 73.3% | 73.3% | 73.3% | 1 |
| 2000s | 82.5% | 80.7% | 83.8% | 5 |
| 2010s | 84.7% | 83.8% | 86.4% | 8 |
Countries ranked near Pakistan
- 62 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 88.5% compare
- 63 Mozambique 87.9% compare
- 64 Sierra Leone 85.2% compare
- 66 Niger 84.2% compare
- 67 Benin 82.0% compare
- 68 Burkina Faso 81.0% compare
More education data for Pakistan
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 2.04 million (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 440,233 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 5.05 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4.90 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 19.70 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 25.38 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 3.1 % 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 0.101 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes in Pakistan?
- Youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes in Pakistan was 84.5% in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes recorded in Pakistan?
- The highest recorded value was 86.4% in 2017.
- What is the lowest youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes recorded in Pakistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 58.4% in 1981.
- How does Pakistan rank for youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes?
- Pakistan ranks 65th out of 72 countries with data for 2019.
- Is youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes rising or falling in Pakistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Pakistan data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, urban, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release