* indicates monthly or quarterly data series

Youth literacy rate, ages 15-24, 2020:

The average for 2020 based on 42 countries was 93.59 percent. The highest value was in Palau: 100 percent and the lowest value was in Mali: 53.35 percent. The indicator is available from 1970 to 2024. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Measure: percent; Source: UNESCO
Select indicator
* indicates monthly or quarterly data series


Countries Youth literacy rate, ages 15-24, 2020 Global rank Available data
Palau 100 1 1980 - 2020
Armenia 99.87 2 1989 - 2023
Indonesia 99.78 3 1980 - 2022
China 99.76 4 1982 - 2020
Georgia 99.76 5 2002 - 2024
Singapore 99.73 6 1980 - 2021
Argentina 99.68 7 1980 - 2020
Oman 99.68 8 2003 - 2022
Spain 99.62 9 1981 - 2021
Bolivia 99.56 10 1976 - 2024
Saudi Arabia 99.5 11 1992 - 2024
Peru 99.44 12 1981 - 2024
Kuwait 99.3 13 1975 - 2020
Palestine 99.23 14 1997 - 2024
Philippines 99.22 15 1980 - 2022
Brazil 99.2 16 1980 - 2024
Guyana 99.14 17 2009 - 2020
Mexico 99.08 18 1980 - 2024
Mongolia 99.07 19 2000 - 2024
Uruguay 99.03 20 1975 - 2024
Colombia 99.01 21 1993 - 2024
Domin. Rep. 98.9 22 1981 - 2024
Sri Lanka 98.86 23 1981 - 2024
Ecuador 98.77 24 1982 - 2024
Paraguay 98.64 25 1982 - 2024
El Salvador 98.52 26 1992 - 2024
Iran 98.45 27 1976 - 2023
Vietnam 98.2 28 1979 - 2022
Burma 96.36 29 1983 - 2020
India 95.68 30 1981 - 2024
Bangladesh 94.46 31 1981 - 2022
Cambodia 94.32 32 1998 - 2023
Rwanda 91.51 33 1978 - 2022
Vanuatu 88.66 34 1979 - 2023
Burundi 88.4 35 1979 - 2020
Tanzania 87.55 36 1988 - 2022
Zambia 85.86 37 1990 - 2024
Malawi 80.73 38 1987 - 2020
Mauritania 70.86 39 2000 - 2020
Mozambique 70.08 40 1980 - 2022
Afghanistan 53.97 41 1979 - 2022
Mali 53.35 42 1976 - 2024


New - World map: Youth literacy rate, ages 15-24




Definition: 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.

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