60 Years of International Literacy Day: Global Literacy at 88%, but 739 Million Adults Cannot Read

Sixty years after UNESCO declared International Literacy Day, global literacy has improved significantly, but hundreds of millions of people still lack basic reading and writing skills. The latest available data shows that 88 percent of adults are literate, but approximately 739 million adults are unable to read and write.

 

International Literacy Day was declared by UNESCO in 1966 and was first celebrated on September 8, 1967. The world was very different back then, and global literacy rates were much lower than they are today. In 1950, only 56 percent of the world’s adults could read and write, and by 1980, this number had increased to 70 percent.

 

The theme for the 60th anniversary of International Literacy Day, which falls on September 8, 2026, is “Literacy for people, the planet and prosperity.” The theme highlights the importance of literacy for inclusion, sustainability, and economic well-being, but also connects it to the ability to participate fully in society.

 

UNESCO is organizing the global event, which will take place in Mexico on September 8 and 9. Global literacy on the rise, but some regions far ahead of others.

Young people today are more likely to be literate than their parents and grandparents. According to the latest estimates, the literacy rate among 15-to-24-year-olds is 93 percent, compared to 88 percent among adults overall. In 2000, literacy rates among adults were 81 percent and among young people – 87 percent.

 

Yet, there is a huge disparity between regions. According to UIS – UNESCO Institute for Statistics – between 2015 and 2024, adult literacy rates in Europe and Northern America were as high as 98.7 percent, compared to 96.7 percent in East and Southeast Asia and 94.8 percent in Latin America and the Caribbean.

 

The rates were lower in Central and Southern Asia (76.5 percent) and Northern Africa and Western Asia (81.5 percent) and lowest in Sub-Saharan Africa (68.5 percent).

 

Central and Southern Asia saw the highest increase in literacy rates between 1995 and 2004 and 2015 – 2024, rising from 63.3 percent to 76.5 percent. However, according to estimates from UIS, there are still 347 million people in this region who lack basic literacy skills.

 

A similar situation in Sub-Saharan Africa, where the adult literacy rate increased by nearly 10 percentage points during the same period but the number of illiterate people rose from 196 million to 225 million due to population growth.

 

Women and learning quality: two big challenges

 

Women make up nearly two-thirds of the world’s population that lacks basic literacy skills. In addition, UNESCO data shows that only about 50 percent of children are able to read and write at the minimum level expected for their age, and only 40 percent achieve the minimum standard in math.

 

Only 62 percent of young people on average finish upper secondary education, while the percentage is just 29 percent in Sub-Saharan Africa. There is a big gap between girls and boys, and between different areas of the world.

 

This data demonstrates that even though school enrollment is rising, literacy acquisition is lagging in many developing countries due to various socio-economic challenges, such as poverty, lack of educational infrastructure, and gender inequalities.

 

Sixty years after UNESCO declared International Literacy Day, the global literacy landscape has changed considerably. Today, more people than ever before can read and write, and younger generations are more likely to be literate than older ones. However, current global literacy rates are still far from ideal as millions of people, especially women, still lack basic literacy skills.