Closing the Literacy Gender Gap

Literacy is not only a human right and a key ingredient to personal and social development, but it’s also a potent driver of gender equality. Without basic education, girls and women are cut off from access to information and opportunities for personal development, potentially keeping them from fully participating in society and cementing traditional gender roles.

And while a lot of progress has been made in ensuring equal access to education for girls and boys, the literacy gender gap persists to this day. At the global level, the literacy rate for women aged 15 and older stood at 84 percent in 2020, compared to 90 percent for men of the same age. While that is a huge improvement compared to adult literacy rates of 59 percent (female) and 76 percent (male) in 1976, the 6-percent gap is still equal to 175 million women lacking a skill so essential that it’s considered a human right.

According to UNESCO data, the female adult literacy rates in low-income countries was 53 percent in 2020, compared to 69 percent for men. In some countries like Afghanistan, fewer than 3 in 10 women aged 15 and older know how to read and write – a deficit that could stand in the way of gender equality for decades.