In 2023, 67.97 percent of people aged 15 years and above in Africa were able to read and write a simple statement and understand it. Regionally, Southern Africa presented the highest literacy rate, at around 80 percent. North and East Africa had similar shares of literate people, at over 71 percent. In contrast, 67.5 percent and 54 percent of the adult population in Central and West Africa could read and write.

Between 2018 and 2022, Seychelles was the country with the highest adult literacy rate in Africa, at around 96 percent. São Tomé and Príncipe and Namibia followed with a literacy rate of approximately 94 percent and 92 percent, respectively. The average rate on the continent stood at roughly 67 percent. Moreover, Southern Africa had the highest literacy levels among African regions.

Adult literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life.

In 2020, 65.9 percent of people aged 15 years and above in Sub-Saharan Africa were able to read and write a simple statement. The adult literacy rate varied, however, according to gender. While 72.5 percent of males were literate, the share among females was measured at 59.4 percent. Overall, the literate population has been slowly growing in the region, with the prevalence of a wide gender gap.

In 2021, 78.6 percent of the people aged 15 to 24 years in Africa were able to read and write a simple statement with understanding. Regionally, North Africa presented the highest youth literacy rate, at nearly 90 percent. Southern Africa followed closely, with 88 percent of young people literate. In contrast, 68 percent of the youth population in West Africa could read and write.

This dataset provides values for LITERACY RATE ADULT TOTAL PERCENT OF PEOPLE AGES 15 AND ABOVE WB DATA.HTML reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

In 2023, the rate of adult literacy as share of the country's population 15 years and above in Sub-Saharan Africa remained nearly unchanged at around 68.2 percent. Still, the rate of adult literacy reached its highest value in the observed period in 2023. The adult literacy rate refers to the share of individuals aged 15 years and older who can read and write as well as understand simple expressions about their daily lives.

Graph and download economic data for Literacy Rate, Adult Total for Developing Countries in Middle East and North Africa (SEADTLITRZSMNA) from 1972 to 2023 about North Africa, Middle East, literacy, adult, and rate.

Graph and download economic data for Literacy Rate, Adult Total: All Income Levels for Sub-Saharan Africa (SEADTLITRZSSSF) from 1985 to 2023 about Sub-Saharan Africa, literacy, adult, income, and rate.

As of 2021, South Africa's total literacy rate was around 90 percent, which means 90 percent of all South Africans could read and write. There is literally no definitionThe literacy rate measures the percentage of people aged 15 and above who can read and write. There is no common definition for what counts as being literate; individual countries use individual assessments and standards to define it. Despite this, the literacy rate is an important indicator of the standard of education and thus the standard of living in a country. Sub-standard Sub-SaharaAlthough its educational system does not have the best reputation, South Africa’s literacy rate is well above average among their geographical peers in Sub-Saharan Africa. Illiteracy is still a significant global problem, and Sub-Saharan Africa is not among the leading regions when it comes to literacy and education. In 2011, 32 million children of primary school age did not go to school in that region, but projections see enrollment figures increasing in the future – if true, this could not only improve the region’s literacy rates, but also its standard of living and human progress in general.

South Africa ZA: Literacy Rate: Youth Female: % of Females Aged 15-24 data was reported at 99.229 % in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 99.084 % for 2014. South Africa ZA: Literacy Rate: Youth Female: % of Females Aged 15-24 data is updated yearly, averaging 98.901 % from Dec 1980 (Median) to 2015, with 9 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 99.271 % in 2012 and a record low of 84.973 % in 1980. South Africa ZA: Literacy Rate: Youth Female: % of Females Aged 15-24 data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s South Africa – Table ZA.World Bank: Education Statistics. 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.; ; UNESCO Institute for Statistics; Weighted average; Each economy is classified based on the classification of World Bank Group's fiscal year 2018 (July 1, 2017-June 30, 2018).

Adult literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life.

South Africa ZA: Literacy Rate: Adult Male: % of Males Aged 15 and Above data was reported at 95.397 % in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 95.287 % for 2014. South Africa ZA: Literacy Rate: Adult Male: % of Males Aged 15 and Above data is updated yearly, averaging 94.144 % from Dec 1980 (Median) to 2015, with 9 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 95.397 % in 2015 and a record low of 77.526 % in 1980. South Africa ZA: Literacy Rate: Adult Male: % of Males Aged 15 and Above data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s South Africa – Table ZA.World Bank.WDI: Education Statistics. Adult literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life.; ; UNESCO Institute for Statistics; Weighted average; Each economy is classified based on the classification of World Bank Group's fiscal year 2018 (July 1, 2017-June 30, 2018).

The literacy rate among females in Cabo Verde reached 82 percent. Cabo Verde represented the West African country in which the literacy rate among women aged 15 years and over was the highest. On the contrary, the literacy rate in Chad equaled to 14 percent of female adults, the lowest figure in West Africa.

Central African Republic CF: Literacy Rate: Adult Female: % of Females Aged 15 and Above data was reported at 26.200 % in 2020. This records a decrease from the previous number of 27.131 % for 2019. Central African Republic CF: Literacy Rate: Adult Female: % of Females Aged 15 and Above data is updated yearly, averaging 26.000 % from Dec 1975 (Median) to 2020, with 7 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 35.000 % in 2000 and a record low of 8.000 % in 1975. Central African Republic CF: Literacy Rate: Adult Female: % of Females Aged 15 and Above data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Central African Republic – Table CF.World Bank.WDI: Social: Education Statistics. Adult literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life.;UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS). UIS.Stat Bulk Data Download Service. Accessed September 30, 2024. https://apiportal.uis.unesco.org/bdds.;Weighted average;

South Africa literacy rate for 2021 was 90.00%, a 5.02% decline from 2019.

• South Africa literacy rate for 2019 was 95.02%, a 7.98% increase from 2017.
• South Africa literacy rate for 2017 was 87.05%, a 7.32% decline from 2015.
• South Africa literacy rate for 2015 was 94.37%, a 0.23% increase from 2014.

This data set provides the supplemental code, data and shape-files for Simpson et al. 2021. Climate Change Literacy in Africa, Nature Climate Change. Data set includes the following:Code for cleaning and merging the Afrobarometer data, as well as to run the analyses.Data set of national and sub-national climate change literacy rates for Africa.Data set of gender differences of national climate change literacy rates for Africa.Shape files presenting national and sub-national climate change literacy rates for Africa.Code and computed output files for climate trends extracted from ERA-5 experienced by Afrobarometer survey respondents for:the number of months per year in the past ten- and thirty-year periods in which temperature was above the 95th percentile (PPT),Standardized Precipitation-Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI),3-month Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI),the duration of the longest dry spell (Max CDD) of the year. Original datasets analysed during the current study are available from: the Afrobarometer repository, https://www.afrobarometer.org/data (all geolocation data has been removed from respondents in accordance with Afrobarometer data use protocols but can be accessed from the Afrobarometer).The ERA5-Land monthly data from the Copernicus Climate Data Store, https://cds.climate.copernicus.eu/cdsapp#!/home,EM-DAT – the international disaster database https://www.emdat.be/.

The youth literacy rate (people aged 15-24) in Sub-Saharan Africa saw no significant changes in 2023 in comparison to the previous year 2022 and remained at around 78.62 percent. Nevertheless, 2023 still represents a peak in the youth literacy rate in Sub-Saharan Africa with 78.62 percent. The youth literacy rate refers to the share of individuals between the ages of 15 and 24 and who can read and write as well as understand simple expressions about their daily lives.

South Africa ZA: Literacy Rate: Youth: % of People Age 15-24 data was reported at 98.956 % in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 98.882 % for 2014. South Africa ZA: Literacy Rate: Youth: % of People Age 15-24 data is updated yearly, averaging 98.644 % from Dec 1980 (Median) to 2015, with 9 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 98.956 % in 2015 and a record low of 85.166 % in 1980. South Africa ZA: Literacy Rate: Youth: % of People Age 15-24 data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s South Africa – Table ZA.World Bank: Education Statistics. 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.; ; UNESCO Institute for Statistics; Weighted average; Each economy is classified based on the classification of World Bank Group's fiscal year 2018 (July 1, 2017-June 30, 2018).

The overall aim of the USAID/SA basic education program is to improve primary grade reading outcomes by building teacher effectiveness and strengthening classroom and school management. This is being accomplished through support to innovative, local interventions that have a demonstrated capacity for scale-up. The main USAID/SA program is the School Capacity and Innovation Program (SCIP), which also leverages significant private sector resources, amplifying the impact of USAID’s investment in the South African education system. SCIP is co-funded by The ELMA Foundation and J.P. Morgan and designed in collaboration with the South African Department of Basic Education. SCIP supports local South African models or interventions that work directly with teachers and school management teams in innovative ways in order to improve their practice as instructional leaders and managers. SCIP is aligned to the USAID Global Education Strategy (2011–2015) which supports interventions to improve learning outcomes with a focus on primary grade reading as a measure of performance. In addition to seeking initiatives that demonstrate innovation and impact, sustainability and scalability are key components of the SCIP program. The Strengthening Teaching of Early Language and Literacy (STELLAR) Program improves the language and literacy skills of Grade R children from disadvantaged communities in South Africa by training and supporting Grade R teachers. Grade R (also called the Reception Year) is the year of schooling before Grade 1.