The highest literacy rates in Nigeria were registered in the southern regions of the country. In the South West, 89 percent of males and 80.6 percent of females were literate as of 2018. Also, the south zones showed the lowest percentage differences between male and female literacy. Female literacy rate in Nigeria is among the highest in West Africa. The highest female literacy rates were registered in Cabo Verde and Ghana, while Nigeria ranked third.

The rate of adult literacy as share of the country's population 15 years and above in Nigeria was 63.16 percent in 2021. Between 1991 and 2021, the rate of adult literacy rose by 8.16 percentage points, though the increase followed an uneven trajectory rather than a consistent upward trend.

Female literacy rate in Nigeria is among the highest in West Africa. However, the difference between male and female literacy rates are substantial in both urban and rural areas. As of 2018, the rate among men living in rural areas of Nigeria reached roughly 60 percent, whereas female literacy rates in the same areas was 35 percent. The gap in urban Nigeria amounted to about ten percentage points.

In West Africa, the highest female literacy rates were registered in Cabo Verde and Ghana, while Nigeria ranked third.

Graph and download economic data for Literacy Rate, Adult Total for Nigeria (SEADTLITRZSNGA) from 1991 to 2024 about literacy, Nigeria, adult, and rate.

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

Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Youth Female: % of Females Aged 15-24 data was reported at 57.954 % in 2008. This records a decrease from the previous number of 60.509 % for 2003. Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Youth Female: % of Females Aged 15-24 data is updated yearly, averaging 60.509 % from Dec 1991 (Median) to 2008, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 62.488 % in 1991 and a record low of 57.954 % in 2008. Nigeria NG: 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 Nigeria – Table NG.World Bank.WDI: 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).

Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Adult: % of People Aged 15 and Above data was reported at 51.078 % in 2008. This records a decrease from the previous number of 54.773 % for 2003. Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Adult: % of People Aged 15 and Above data is updated yearly, averaging 54.773 % from Dec 1991 (Median) to 2008, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 55.447 % in 1991 and a record low of 51.078 % in 2008. Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Adult: % of People Aged 15 and Above data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Nigeria – Table NG.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).

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

Yearly (annual) dataset of the Nigeria Adult Literacy Rate, including historical data, latest releases, and long-term trends from 1991-12-31 to 2021-12-31. Available for free download in CSV format.

Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Adult Female: % of Females Aged 15 and Above data was reported at 41.387 % in 2008. This records a decrease from the previous number of 43.322 % for 2003. Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Adult Female: % of Females Aged 15 and Above data is updated yearly, averaging 43.322 % from Dec 1991 (Median) to 2008, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 43.729 % in 1991 and a record low of 41.387 % in 2008. Nigeria NG: 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 Nigeria – Table NG.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).

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

Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Youth: % of People Age 15-24 data was reported at 66.384 % in 2008. This records a decrease from the previous number of 68.994 % for 2003. Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Youth: % of People Age 15-24 data is updated yearly, averaging 68.994 % from Dec 1991 (Median) to 2008, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 71.189 % in 1991 and a record low of 66.384 % in 2008. Nigeria NG: 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 Nigeria – Table NG.World Bank.WDI: 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).

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

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

As of 2019, women in Nigeria represented ** percent of the total enrollments in adult and basic literacy education in the country. According to the source, Kebbi State had the lowest share of female enrollment.

Nigeria - Regional Education Access

  Dataset Description

Regional education access metrics including literacy rates and school density.

  Dataset Information

Country: Nigeria Dataset Name: regional_education_access Total Records: 100,000 Total Columns: 10 File Size: 6.70 MB Format: Parquet (full data), CSV (sample) Generated: 2025-10-21T23:15:14.009597

  Schema

Column Data Type Description

region_id object Region Id

region_name object… See the full description on the dataset page: https://huggingface.co/datasets/electricsheepafrica/nigeria-education-regional-education-access.

As of 2019, around ** percent of young women and ** percent of young men in Nigeria were literate in English. This means they could understand, read, and write a short, simple statement, for instance, on their everyday life in English.

Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Youth Male: % of Males Aged 15-24 data was reported at 75.566 % in 2008. This records a decrease from the previous number of 78.128 % for 2003. Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Youth Male: % of Males Aged 15-24 data is updated yearly, averaging 78.128 % from Dec 1991 (Median) to 2008, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 81.356 % in 1991 and a record low of 75.566 % in 2008. Nigeria NG: Literacy Rate: Youth Male: % of Males Aged 15-24 data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Nigeria – Table NG.World Bank.WDI: 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).

1 Nigerian Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria: Social Statistics of Nigeria, 20122 IDEAS baseline survey3 The National Literacy Survey, June 2010, National Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria. www.nigerianstat.gov.ng4 Nigerian Demographic and Health Survey preliminary report, 2013 http://dhsprogram.com/pubs/pdf/PR41/PR41.pdf5 UNICEF (2011) Country factsheets. www.unicef.org/infobycountry/ethiopia_statistics.html6 Indian population Census 2011, www.census2011.co.in/census/state/uttarpradesh.html7http://www.unicef.org/nigeria/ng_publications_advocacybrochure.pdf[for north east Nigeria as a whole]8 United Nations Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-agency group http://www.maternalmortalitydata.org/9 Annual health survey bulletin 2011–12: Uttar Pradesh. http://www.censusindia.gov.in/vital_statistics/AHSBulletins/files2012/Uttar%20Pradesh_Bulletin%202011-12.pdf10 Population Reference Bureau at http://www.un.org/esa/population/meetings/EGM-Fertility2009/Haub.pdf11Annual Abstract of Statistics 2011, National Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria.Descriptive statistics for geographies included in this analysis.

Cross sectional data, all countries for the statistic Literacy_Rate_Adult_Total. Indicator Definition: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.Indicator Unit:The statistic is measured in Percent.Descriptive Statistics regarding the Indicator "Literacy Rate Adult Total":The number of countries with data stands at: 20 countries.The average value across those countries stands at: 92.82.The standard deviation across those countries stands at: 6.92.The lowest value stands at: 70.41, and was observed in Nigeria, which in this case constitutes the country that ranks last.The highest value stands at: 99.68, and was observed in Georgia, which in this case constitutes the country that ranks first.Looking at countries with values, the top 5 countries are:1. Georgia, actual value 99.68, actual ranking 1.2. Uruguay, actual value 98.91, actual ranking 2.3. United Arab Emirates, actual value 98.81, actual ranking 3.4. West Bank and Gaza, actual value 97.94, actual ranking 4.5. Saudi Arabia, actual value 97.93, actual ranking 5.Looking at countries with values, the bottom 5 countries are:1. Nigeria, actual value 70.41, actual ranking 20.2. Guatemala, actual value 82.11, actual ranking 19.3. Honduras, actual value 88.25, actual ranking 18.4. Cabo Verde, actual value 88.47, actual ranking 17.5. El Salvador, actual value 89.77, actual ranking 16.