Globally, the youth literacy rate increased from 83 per cent to 91 per cent over two decades, while the number of illiterate youth declined from 170 million to 115 million. Sep 08, 2016 a student writes on a blackboard during a literacy class in kabul, afghanistan. In 20, one million afghan children have enrolled in school because of usaid assistance. Afghanistan has one of the worst maternal mortality rates in the south asia, with an estimated 460 per 100,000 live births.
Subsaharan africa, the region with the lowest overall literacy rates, also. Low literacy also costs public services, businesses and the economy millions each year. This results in an exclusion of lowliterate and lowskilled youth and adults from full participation in their communities and societies. In 2018, adult literacy rate for afghanistan was 43 %. The literacy needs of afghan children are crucial to the future of their country. Feb 03, 2018 most afghans cant read, but their book trade is booming. To help afghanistan address this ongoing challenge, the asia.
Even with this help, government of afghanistan still faces number of challenges, including low revenue collection, anemic job creation, high levels of corruption, weak government capacity, and poor public infrastructure. Information on literacy, while not a perfect measure of educational results, is probably the most easily available and valid for international comparisons. Almost universally, low basic literacy rates reflect wide gender disparities, often with mens basic literacy rate exceeding that of women by a factor of two e. Washington army news service, june, 2011 in afghanistan, the low literacy rate about 14 percent presents challenges to army efforts there to help that nation become independent. Kabul despite some four million afghans becoming literate since 2002, afghanistan still has one of the highest illiteracy rates in the world with about nine million illiterate adults, according to the afghan ministry of education. But it was one of the countries that experienced rapid school expansion in the late 1930s, according to united nations educational, scientific and cultural organizations unesco 2006 education for all global monitoring report, and, as a result, literacy rates. Afghanistan has one of the lowest rates of literacy in the world with 71 percent adults unable to read and write, of. Despite some recent improvements in this area, the education of girls is still largely neglected with female students comprising only onethird of all children attending school. At 31%, afghanistan has one of the worlds lowest literacy rates. Field listing literacy the world factbook central intelligence. Afghanistan the human capital index hci database provides data at the country level for each of the components of the human capital index as well as for the overall index, disaggregated by gender.
This results in an exclusion of low literate and low skilled youth and adults from full participation in their communities and societies. Literacy rate, adult total for the islamic republic of. Literacy as tool for sustainable development unesco. Islamabad, 7 june irin literacy rates are expected to remain at extremely low levels as millions of children continue to be deprived of education in afghanistan, according to international. Illiteracy rate in afghanistan stands at 64pc afghanistan times. Illiteracy persists among afghan troops despite us education. The index measures the amount of human capital that a child born today can expect to attain by age 18, given the risks of poor health and poor. Education rates in afghanistan are significantly lower than those of other countries. The kite runner by khaled hosseini, a thousand splendid suns by khaled hosseini, and the mountains echoed by khaled hossein.
The country is no doubt beautiful and the country is much better as compared to other african countries is also not as good in life expectancy as expected. Yet, the nations literacy rate still remains one of the lowest in the world estimated at 27 percent. The literacy rate among afghan adults is 32%, and one might ask. Most afghans cant read, but their book trade is booming the. Literally literacy journal of consumer research oxford. Literacy rates among women and girls in afghanistan have seen minimal growth in the last decade, despite the reestablishment of basic education for girls. The rate varies throughout the world with developed nations having a rate of 99. Jun 21, 20 in afghanistan, billions are being spent every year on development and humanitarian assistance, but little long lasting change is possible without raising the literacy rate, says lauryn oates. Literacy rate, adult total % of people ages 15 and above afghanistan from the world bank. More than onequarter of the males in this nation are literate, while just 11% of females are literate. Every single adult literacy program in new orleans has a wait.
Cia world factbook this page was last updated on december 7, 2019. In 2017 afghanistans growth rate was only marginally above that. In 2017, pakistans total literacy rate was around 59 percent, with less than 47 percent of. These 5 organizations want to boost literacy in afghanistan. In afghanistan, for example, decades of civil conflict have left the country with one of the worlds lowest literacy rates. Afghanistan has the third lowest literacy rate in the world, with less than 30 percent of its population able to read or write. Efforts are underway to lower this figure, with more than 700,000 afghans attending literacy classes this year alone, the countrys education minister, ghulam. Life expectancy in afghanistan is also notably low, under 64 years. In 2017 afghanistan s growth rate was only marginally above that of the 20142016 average. The trauma of war has done much damage to afghanistan and its people, including stealing the childhood of afghan children. Give a young girl a book of her own, and she will find someone to help her read it. Participation rates in basic and secondary education are also startlingly low. But this in fact is the very reason why we initiated book cottage. Literacy rates among youth aged 15 to 24 and adults are the test of an educational system, and the overall trend is positive, thanks to the expansion of educational opportunities.
Afghanistans literacy challenge the asia foundation. The country people are average, and the poor classes are deplorable. In afghanistans provinces, the literacy rates are very low. Those with low literacy skills are far more likely to live in poverty, face health problems because they cant read prescription labels or instructions, and grow isolated in a world increasingly dependent on computers. Mar 20, 2020 graph and download economic data for literacy rate, adult total for the islamic republic of afghanistan seadtlitrzsafg from 1979 to 2018 about afghanistan, literacy, adult, and rate. Top 10 countries with lowest life expectancy rates in the. Literacy is the foundation of community and economic development.
One of the lowest literacy rates in the world is found in niger, where just over 19% of adults can read and write. Opinion empower and educate afghanistans youth to ensure a. Afghanistan war books meet your next favorite book. A very large number of them have always worked in the same field, founding their families, and thus have never felt. According to current estimates, fewer than one in three adult afghans over the age of 15 can read and write. Literacy rate, youth total % of people ages 1524 literacy rate, youth female % of females ages 1524 trained teachers in primary education % of total teachers. Stagnant, low literacy rates can be attributed to the lack of local language print literacy material in the country, a lack of emphasis on reading in. Low levels of literacy, and education in general, can impede the economic development of a country in the current rapidly changing, technologydriven world. Stagnant, low literacy rates can be attributed to the lack of local language print literacy material in the country, a lack of emphasis on reading in outofschool contexts, and insufficient. The afghan government considers someone literate if they are 15 years of age or older, and if they can read and write.
Literacy in afghanistan afghan womens writing project. Adults aged 45 and over with low literacy skills have the distinction of belonging to generations for whom there were attractive job opportunities despite a lower level of schooling. Literacy is popularly understood as an ability to read, write and use numeracy in at least one. South sudan is another nation with a very low literacy rate of just 26. Illiteracy means that one can lack the skills necessary to read the. Towards the end of the book, it looks like the old fable of the ugly. Mohammad sarwar danish, second vice president said on thursday that the high illiteracy rate in the country was terrible and that many of the countrys problems are rooted in this. Being able to read is more than being able to escape into a book and be transported to a different decade or world. In afghanistan, only 37 percent of adolescent girls are literate, compared to 66. For example, afghanistan has an average literacy rate of 38 percent, while the international average is 84 percent. In 2015, adult female illiteracy for afghanistan was 59. Since 2008, afghanistans nationwide literacy rate has increased by 5%.
Afghanistan has one of the lowest literacy rates in the world at 28. Feb, 2019 although afghanistans fertility rate is one of the highest worldwide, its infant mortality rate is the highest worldwide. Speaking at a ceremony to mark the start of the new school year, danish said. Feb, 2020 the literacy rate measures the percentage of people aged 15 and above who are able to read and write. But women participated economically, socially and politically in. Most afghans cant read, but their book trade is booming. A very large number of them have always worked in the same field, founding their families, and thus have never felt the need to go back to school.
The global literacy rate for all people aged 15 and above is 86. 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. Throughout the semester the pair work on writing and illustrating a book. Prior to world war i, the literacy rate in the philippines was at a dismal 20%. Oct 17, 2019 data from the world bank shows that approximately eight million young afghan workers entered the labor market in 2018 amid low literacy levels and few employment options. Illiteracy traps adults, and their families, in poverty. Afghan authorities tackle countrys high illiteracy rate unama. Jan 11, 2011 new radio program to help afghans learn to read. But women participated economically, socially and politically in the life of their societies.
Youth and adult literacy rates in afghanistan are among the lowest in the world. For a range of cultural reasons a wifes worth is based on how many boys she has, a man is often judged as more manly if he has a large number of children, married couples without children or with low numbers of children are viewed as flawed. But this in fact is the very reason why we initiated book. Adult literacy rate of afghanistan increased from 18. The uns afghanistan human development report of 2005 says that the overall adult literacy rate in afghanistan is 28. Nearly 35% of the male residents are literate, while. Total is the percentage of the population age 15 and above who can, with understanding, read and write a short, simple statement on their everyday life. Literacy rate, adult total % of people ages 15 and above. Literacy department 1 literacy tool for sustainable development and key to lifelong learning. For women over age fifteen, the literacy rate was reported to be 12.
According to the asia foundations 2012 survey of the afghan people, 89%. Afghanistan has the third lowest literacy rate in the world, with less than. Our mission is to give hoopoe books to as many afghan schoolage children. We are several years past the united nations literacy decade 20032012, yet the literacy rate for afghans over 15 years old is only 29%. Even before the taliban came to power, afghanistan had high maternal and child mortality rates and a very low literacy rate for women. Sep 06, 2016 the estimated adult literacy rate of the country as of 2015 is 38 percent significantly below that of both the international average of 84 percent, and of neighboring countries such as pakistan 56 percent and iran 87 percent. Jun 18, 2011 as a result, afghanistan has one of the highest illiteracy rates in the world today, and according to the national risk and vulnerability assessment nrva the estimated national adult literacy rate aged 15 and above is 26 percent, with 12 percent for women and 39 percent for men. Why the literacy rate is so low in afghanistan answers. According to some reports, afghan female literacy rate is estimated to be as low as 10% in rural areas between the ages of 15 24. Afghanistan has the second highest maternal mortality rate in the world. Rising literacy in afghanistan ensures transition article. To advance literacy as an integral part of lifelong learning and the 2030 agenda for sustainable development, unesco takes the following approaches to promote literacy worldwide, with an emphasis on youth. And the lack of a skilled workforce, barnesholiday notes, has slowed detroits. Taken together, the results emphasise the importance of literacy and numeracy skills for a more inclusive society in peoples participation in the labour market, education and training, and in social and civic life.
1378 489 442 1507 920 1438 864 952 1016 447 362 833 307 990 189 640 180 1097 1363 223 1235 7 282 12 238 1250 1234 905 1118 323 363 159 494 372 900 189 290 1075 434