Adult literacy rate in Africa

7 countries in Africa, 2024. Unit: % of people aged 15+. World ranking →

First in the ranking
91.2 %
South Africa
Median country
77.0 %
half above, half below
World
87.7 %
World Bank aggregate
Range
35.6 to 91.2
Mali - South Africa

How to read it

Across 7 countries in Africa, the highest value is in South Africa (91.2 %) and the lowest in Mali (35.6 %).

The median country is at 77.0 %: half are above, half below.

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.

Compare selected countries · on the world map

Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://databrowser.uis.unesco.org/resources, note: The data are obtained through… · via World Bank WDI (SE.ADT.LITR.ZS) · licence

Literacy over time

%

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Ranking of countries

2024
In chart Share of the highest value
1South Africa91.2
2Lesotho90.5
3Cabo Verde88.5
4Uganda77.0
5Zambia71.8
6Nigeria70.4
7Mali35.6
World Bank, WDI · SE.ADT.LITR.ZS · 2024 · CC BY 4.0 Source and licence

Tick a country in the table to add it to the chart above, up to six at a time. The ranking uses the latest year for which at least half of the countries have a value; countries without a value that year are not listed.