In 2023, the literacy rate among Indonesians between the ages 15 and 19 years old was ***** percent. The literacy rate in urban areas is higher across all age groups compared to the literacy rate in rural areas.

The statistic depicts the literacy rate in Indonesia from 2008 to 2020. The literacy rate measures the percentage of people aged 15 and above who can read and write. In 2020, Indonesia's literacy rate was around 96 percent.

Actual value and historical data chart for Indonesia Literacy Rate Adult Total Percent Of People Ages 15 And Above

Graph and download economic data for Literacy Rate, Adult Total for Indonesia (SEADTLITRZSIDN) from 1980 to 2020 about literacy, adult, Indonesia, and rate.

Historical dataset showing Indonesia literacy rate by year from 1980 to 2020.

Indonesia: Literacy rate: The latest value from 2020 is 96 percent, unchanged from 96 percent in 2018. In comparison, the world average is 86.55 percent, based on data from 33 countries. Historically, the average for Indonesia from 1980 to 2020 is 90.5 percent. The minimum value, 67 percent, was reached in 1980 while the maximum of 96 percent was recorded in 2018.

According to a survey in 2022, Indonesia's digital literacy index score increased from **** in 2020 to **** in 2022. Overall, Indonesia's digital skills and digital culture had improved, while digital ethics and digital safety in the archipelago had weakened. This means that Indonesians take the feelings of readers from different ethnicity/religion/political views more into account and they are better at double-checking information from the internet compared to the previous year. However, Indonesian internet users have become less sensitive about posting content without permission and less aware of the importance of protecting personal information.

Actual value and historical data chart for Indonesia Literacy Rate Youth Male Percent Of Males Ages 15 24

In 2024, Mountains Papua province had the lowest literacy rate of population above 15 years old in Indonesia, at around ** percent. For decades, Indonesia had been focusing its development more on Java Islands. However, since 2002, Indonesian government has started special funds for Papua to support its development. Despite the extensive financial assistance, Papua’s development growth remains low.

In 2024, Indonesia's financial literacy index was around ***** percent. Although the index has been increasing since 2013, the national financial literacy was still considerably low and indicates that there was still a substantial portion of the population who does not understand financial service providers, their products, features, advantages, and risks, which hinders the development of Open Finances. This measure consists of a survey to assess the level of knowledge, skills, confidence, attitudes, and behavior related to financial services and products.

Indonesia: Female literacy rate, ages 15-24: The latest value from 2020 is 100 percent, unchanged from 100 percent in 2018. In comparison, the world average is 92.09 percent, based on data from 37 countries. Historically, the average for Indonesia from 1980 to 2020 is 97.56 percent. The minimum value, 82 percent, was reached in 1980 while the maximum of 100 percent was recorded in 2014.

Indonesia: Male literacy rate, ages 15-24: The latest value from 2020 is 100 percent, unchanged from 100 percent in 2018. In comparison, the world average is 93.57 percent, based on data from 37 countries. Historically, the average for Indonesia from 1980 to 2020 is 98.61 percent. The minimum value, 90 percent, was reached in 1980 while the maximum of 100 percent was recorded in 2008.

Actual value and historical data chart for Indonesia Elderly Literacy Rate Population 65 Years Both Sexes Percent

View yearly updates and historical trends for Indonesia Adult Literacy Rate. Source: World Bank. Track economic data with YCharts analytics.

Actual value and historical data chart for Indonesia Literacy Rate Youth Female Percent Of Females Ages 15 24

According to a survey on the state of digital literacy in 2022, DI Yogyakarta has the highest digital literacy Index score among other provinces in Indonesia with **** points. The same survey found that Indonesia's digital literacy index score increased from **** in 2020 to **** in 2022.

As of 2023, teenagers between the ages of ** and ** living in urban areas in Indonesia had a literacy rate of ***** percent. In Indonesia, the urban literacy rates were higher than the national literacy rates across all age groups.

As of February 2025, the financial literacy rate among Indonesians who completed university was the highest among other education levels, with a share of around ***** percent. In comparison, Indonesians who didn't complete elementary school had a financial literacy rate of **** percent.

Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, male (%) in Indonesia was reported at 84.61 % in 2018, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Indonesia - Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, male - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on November of 2025.

Abstract

Policymakers and much of the migration literature have long worried that the majority of remittances are used for consumption purposes, not savings or investment, reducing their long-term development potential. One of the main policy responses to try and increase savings from remittances and improve financial management among remittance receivers has been the introduction of financial literacy programs for migrants and/or their families.

Researchers from the World Bank conducted a randomized experiment in Indonesia in the context of a pilot program on financial literacy for female overseas migrant workers and their families. The program was developed as a partnership between the Government of Indonesia and the World Bank, and implemented in Greater Malang area and Blitar District of East Java Province. The training program emphasized financial planning and management, savings, debt management, sending and receiving remittances, and understanding migrant insurance. One key policy question is whether such information is best delivered to the migrant worker herself, to someone in their remaining household, or to both. The experiment directly tested these options using three treatment groups: a group in which only the migrant worker receives training, a group in which the main remittance receiver or decision-maker in the remaining household receives training, and a group in which both receive training.

The baseline survey was conducted on a rolling basis from February to June 2010 to coincide with the training cycle. After the training, three rounds of follow-up surveys were administered to family members left behind. The follow-up surveys were conducted from March 2011 to January 2012, at time intervals corresponding to the migrant being 9, 15, and 19 months abroad on average. The follow-up data was then used to measure impacts on the financial knowledge, behaviors, and remittance and savings outcomes of the remaining household.

Researchers collaborated with Malang's Manpower and Transmigration Office and 11 migrant workers' recruiting agencies (PPTKIS) based in Greater Malang to obtain a sample of 400 migrant workers and their families.

Geographic coverage

Greater Malang

Analysis unit

• Migrant workers
• Family members of migrant workers

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

The recruitment of respondents was conducted on a rolling basis, with the project team periodically contacting the 11 PPTKIS (Privately-owned Indonesian Manpower Placement Company) to obtain lists of workers originating in the Greater Malang and Blitar districts who were recruited by these companies to work abroad. The PPTKIS selected workers who were either staying in their dormitory facilities while undergoing training, or otherwise lived close by. These PPTKIs recruit both males and females, but the males typically do not come and stay in dormitory accommodation, so males were only selected if they lived nearby. They did not screen workers for interest in participating in training, so the workers should be considered as broadly representative of Indonesian female migrants. Researchers set a target sample size of 400 households, and continued to collect workers in batches from these recruiting agencies until this target had been met.

As batches of worker names were received from the PPTKIS, they were entered by project staff onto an Excel worksheet in the order listed by the PPTKIS, and a random number generator used to assign individuals to a treatment status. Since batches of workers were often not of size divisible by four, and were of varying numbers, and that the only information available on the workers was basic data supplied by the PPTKIS, the research team did not stratify the randomization. The sample of 400 migrant workers was randomly assigned into one of the following groups:

• Treatment A: Financial literacy training is provided to the migrant worker only
• Treatment B: Financial literacy training is provided to the migrant worker's household member only
• Treatment C: Financial literacy training is provided separately to both the migrant workers and to their household members
• Group D: Control group with no financial literacy training provided

Out of the sample of 400 migrant workers, this random assignment resulted in 101 migrant households being assigned to treatment A, 97 - to treatment B, 98 - to treatment C, and 104 - to a control group.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]