{"id": 998324, "name": "Literacy rate", "unit": "%", "description": "Percentage of the population (aged 15 and above) who can read and write.", "createdAt": "2024-11-21T09:09:29.000Z", "updatedAt": "2025-06-04T15:47:15.000Z", "coverage": "", "timespan": "1475-2023", "datasetId": 6809, "shortUnit": "%", "columnOrder": 0, "shortName": "combined_literacy", "catalogPath": "grapher/wb/2024-11-04/edstats/edstats#combined_literacy", "descriptionShort": "Percentage of the population aged 15 and above who can read and write a short, simple statement on their everyday life.", "descriptionProcessing": "**Recent estimates:**\n\nPercentage of the population between age 25 and age 64 who can, with understanding, read and write a short, simple statement on their everyday life. Generally, \u2018literacy\u2019 also encompasses \u2018numeracy\u2019, the ability to make simple arithmetic calculations. This indicator is calculated by dividing the number of literates aged 25-64 years by the corresponding age group population and multiplying the result by 100.\n\nWorld Bank variable id: UIS.LR.AG25T64\n\nOriginal source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics\n\n**Historical literacy data:**\n\nThe historical estimates in this long-run cross-country dataset were derived from a blend of diverse sources, each contributing to different time periods. For data before 1800, the dataset relies on the work of Buringh and Van Zanden (2009), which offers insights into literacy through the lens of manuscript and book production in Europe from the sixth to the eighteenth centuries. For the years 1820 and 1870 (excluding the United States), it incorporates data from Broadberry and O'Rourke's \"The Cambridge Economic History of Modern Europe.\" The United States data comes from the National Center for Education Statistics. Additionally, global estimates for the period 1820-2000 are drawn from van Zanden and colleagues\u2019 \"How Was Life?: Global Well-being since 1820,\" an OECD publication. For historical estimates specific to Latin America, the dataset uses the Oxford Latin American Economic History Database (OxLAD). Each source follows a consistent conceptual definition of literacy, although discrepancies among sources are acknowledged, necessitating cautious interpretation of year-to-year changes. The dataset also includes instances where specific sources were preferred, such as opting for OxLAD data over the World Bank for Paraguay in 1982 due to significant differences in literacy rate estimates.", "type": "float", "dataChecksum": "6763375566634596769", "metadataChecksum": "4895934352630620600", "datasetName": "World Bank Education Statistics (EdStats)", "updatePeriodDays": 364, "datasetVersion": "2024-11-04", "nonRedistributable": false, "display": {"unit": "%", "shortUnit": "%", "numDecimalPlaces": 1}, "schemaVersion": 2, "presentation": {"topicTagsLinks": ["Global Education"]}, "dimensions": {"years": {"values": [{"id": 1979}, {"id": 2011}, {"id": 2015}, {"id": 2021}, {"id": 2001}, {"id": 2008}, {"id": 2012}, {"id": 2017}, {"id": 2022}, {"id": 1987}, {"id": 2002}, {"id": 2006}, {"id": 2018}, {"id": 1980}, {"id": 2014}, {"id": 1984}, {"id": 1990}, {"id": 2000}, {"id": 2010}, {"id": 1978}, {"id": 1981}, {"id": 1982}, {"id": 1983}, {"id": 1985}, {"id": 1986}, {"id": 1988}, {"id": 1989}, {"id": 1991}, {"id": 1992}, {"id": 1993}, {"id": 1994}, {"id": 1995}, {"id": 1996}, {"id": 1997}, {"id": 1998}, {"id": 1999}, {"id": 2003}, {"id": 2004}, {"id": 2005}, {"id": 2007}, {"id": 2009}, {"id": 2013}, {"id": 2016}, {"id": 2019}, {"id": 2020}, {"id": 2023}, {"id": 1900}, {"id": 1910}, {"id": 1920}, {"id": 1930}, {"id": 1940}, {"id": 1950}, {"id": 1960}, {"id": 1970}, {"id": 1475}, {"id": 1550}, {"id": 1650}, {"id": 1750}, {"id": 1971}, {"id": 1972}, {"id": 1973}, {"id": 1974}, {"id": 1975}, {"id": 1976}, {"id": 1977}, {"id": 1820}, {"id": 1870}, {"id": 1880}, {"id": 1890}, {"id": 1947}, {"id": 1952}, {"id": 1959}, {"id": 1969}]}, "entities": {"values": [{"id": 15, "name": "Afghanistan", "code": "AFG"}, {"id": 16, "name": "Albania", "code": "ALB"}, {"id": 17, "name": "Algeria", "code": "DZA"}, {"id": 246, "name": "American Samoa", "code": "ASM"}, {"id": 18, "name": "Andorra", "code": "AND"}, {"id": 19, "name": "Angola", "code": "AGO"}, {"id": 228, "name": "Anguilla", "code": "AIA"}, {"id": 20, "name": "Antigua and Barbuda", "code": "ATG"}, {"id": 309, "name": "Arab World", "code": null}, {"id": 367395, "name": "Arab World (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 21, "name": "Argentina", "code": "ARG"}, {"id": 22, "name": "Armenia", "code": "ARM"}, {"id": 219, "name": "Aruba", "code": "ABW"}, {"id": 23, "name": "Australia", "code": "AUS"}, {"id": 24, "name": "Austria", "code": "AUT"}, {"id": 25, "name": "Azerbaijan", "code": "AZE"}, {"id": 26, "name": "Bahamas", "code": "BHS"}, {"id": 27, "name": "Bahrain", "code": "BHR"}, {"id": 28, "name": "Bangladesh", "code": "BGD"}, {"id": 29, "name": "Barbados", "code": "BRB"}, {"id": 30, "name": "Belarus", "code": "BLR"}, {"id": 4, "name": "Belgium", "code": "BEL"}, {"id": 31, "name": "Belize", "code": "BLZ"}, {"id": 32, "name": "Benin", "code": "BEN"}, {"id": 194, "name": "Bermuda", "code": "BMU"}, {"id": 33, "name": "Bhutan", "code": "BTN"}, {"id": 34, "name": "Bolivia", "code": "BOL"}, {"id": 35, "name": "Bosnia and Herzegovina", "code": "BIH"}, {"id": 36, "name": "Botswana", "code": "BWA"}, {"id": 37, "name": "Brazil", "code": "BRA"}, {"id": 196, "name": "British Virgin Islands", "code": "VGB"}, {"id": 38, "name": "Brunei", "code": "BRN"}, {"id": 39, "name": "Bulgaria", "code": "BGR"}, {"id": 40, "name": "Burkina Faso", "code": "BFA"}, {"id": 41, "name": "Burundi", "code": "BDI"}, {"id": 42, "name": "Cambodia", "code": "KHM"}, {"id": 43, "name": "Cameroon", "code": "CMR"}, {"id": 44, "name": "Canada", "code": "CAN"}, {"id": 45, "name": "Cape Verde", "code": "CPV"}, {"id": 312, "name": "Caribbean small states", "code": null}, {"id": 197, "name": "Cayman Islands", "code": "CYM"}, {"id": 174, "name": "Central African Republic", "code": "CAF"}, {"id": 310, "name": "Central Europe and the Baltics", "code": null}, {"id": 367400, "name": "Central Europe and the Baltics (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 173, "name": "Chad", "code": "TCD"}, {"id": 172, "name": "Chile", "code": "CHL"}, {"id": 171, "name": "China", "code": "CHN"}, {"id": 170, "name": "Colombia", "code": "COL"}, {"id": 169, "name": "Comoros", "code": "COM"}, {"id": 168, "name": "Congo", "code": "COG"}, {"id": 199, "name": "Cook Islands", "code": "COK"}, {"id": 166, "name": "Costa Rica", "code": "CRI"}, {"id": 143, "name": "Cote d'Ivoire", "code": "CIV"}, {"id": 165, "name": "Croatia", "code": "HRV"}, {"id": 164, "name": "Cuba", "code": "CUB"}, {"id": 163, "name": "Cyprus", "code": "CYP"}, {"id": 162, "name": "Czechia", "code": "CZE"}, {"id": 167, "name": "Democratic Republic of Congo", "code": "COD"}, {"id": 161, "name": "Denmark", "code": "DNK"}, {"id": 154, "name": "Djibouti", "code": "DJI"}, {"id": 200, "name": "Dominica", "code": "DMA"}, {"id": 160, "name": "Dominican Republic", "code": "DOM"}, {"id": 4674, "name": "Early-demographic dividend", "code": null}, {"id": 345, "name": "East Asia & Pacific", "code": null}, {"id": 34680, "name": "East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD)", "code": null}, {"id": 4673, "name": "East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)", "code": null}, {"id": 367396, "name": "East Asia and the Pacific (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 225, "name": "East Timor", "code": "TLS"}, {"id": 201, "name": "Ecuador", "code": "ECU"}, {"id": 65, "name": "Egypt", "code": "EGY"}, {"id": 259, "name": "El Salvador", "code": "SLV"}, {"id": 159, "name": "Equatorial Guinea", "code": "GNQ"}, {"id": 157, "name": "Eritrea", "code": "ERI"}, {"id": 156, "name": "Estonia", "code": "EST"}, {"id": 78, "name": "Eswatini", "code": "SWZ"}, {"id": 158, "name": "Ethiopia", "code": "ETH"}, {"id": 4676, "name": "Europe & Central Asia", "code": null}, {"id": 34681, "name": "Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD)", "code": null}, {"id": 4675, "name": "Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)", "code": null}, {"id": 349171, "name": "Europe and Central Asia (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 202, "name": "Fiji", "code": "FJI"}, {"id": 155, "name": "Finland", "code": "FIN"}, {"id": 319, "name": "Fragile and conflict affected situations", "code": null}, {"id": 3, "name": "France", "code": "FRA"}, {"id": 203, "name": "French Polynesia", "code": "PYF"}, {"id": 153, "name": "Gabon", "code": "GAB"}, {"id": 151, "name": "Gambia", "code": "GMB"}, {"id": 152, "name": "Georgia", "code": "GEO"}, {"id": 6, "name": "Germany", "code": "DEU"}, {"id": 150, "name": "Ghana", "code": "GHA"}, {"id": 251, "name": "Gibraltar", "code": "GIB"}, {"id": 149, "name": "Greece", "code": "GRC"}, {"id": 205, "name": "Greenland", "code": "GRL"}, {"id": 206, "name": "Grenada", "code": "GRD"}, {"id": 254, "name": "Guam", "code": "GUM"}, {"id": 148, "name": "Guatemala", "code": "GTM"}, {"id": 147, "name": "Guinea", "code": "GIN"}, {"id": 94, "name": "Guinea-Bissau", "code": "GNB"}, {"id": 146, "name": "Guyana", "code": "GUY"}, {"id": 145, "name": "Haiti", "code": "HTI"}, {"id": 321, "name": "Heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC)", "code": null}, {"id": 139, "name": "Honduras", "code": "HND"}, {"id": 144, "name": "Hong Kong", "code": "HKG"}, {"id": 138, "name": "Hungary", "code": "HUN"}, {"id": 4677, "name": "IBRD only", "code": null}, {"id": 4678, "name": "IDA & IBRD total", "code": null}, {"id": 4680, "name": "IDA blend", "code": null}, {"id": 4681, "name": "IDA only", "code": null}, {"id": 4679, "name": "IDA total", "code": null}, {"id": 207, "name": "Iceland", "code": "ISL"}, {"id": 137, "name": "India", "code": "IND"}, {"id": 136, "name": "Indonesia", "code": "IDN"}, {"id": 135, "name": "Iran", "code": "IRN"}, {"id": 134, "name": "Iraq", "code": "IRQ"}, {"id": 2, "name": "Ireland", "code": "IRL"}, {"id": 133, "name": "Israel", "code": "ISR"}, {"id": 8, "name": "Italy", "code": "ITA"}, {"id": 132, "name": "Jamaica", "code": "JAM"}, {"id": 14, "name": "Japan", "code": "JPN"}, {"id": 130, "name": "Jordan", "code": "JOR"}, {"id": 131, "name": "Kazakhstan", "code": "KAZ"}, {"id": 129, "name": "Kenya", "code": "KEN"}, {"id": 204, "name": "Kiribati", "code": "KIR"}, {"id": 379, "name": "Kosovo", "code": "OWID_KOS"}, {"id": 208, "name": "Kuwait", "code": "KWT"}, {"id": 126, "name": "Kyrgyzstan", "code": "KGZ"}, {"id": 125, "name": "Laos", "code": "LAO"}, {"id": 4683, "name": "Late-demographic dividend", "code": null}, {"id": 344, "name": "Latin America & Caribbean", "code": null}, {"id": 34682, "name": "Latin America & Caribbean (IDA & IBRD)", "code": null}, {"id": 4682, "name": "Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)", "code": null}, {"id": 349170, "name": "Latin America and Caribbean (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 122, "name": "Latvia", "code": "LVA"}, {"id": 325, "name": "Least developed countries: UN classification", "code": null}, {"id": 124, "name": "Lebanon", "code": "LBN"}, {"id": 123, "name": "Lesotho", "code": "LSO"}, {"id": 121, "name": "Liberia", "code": "LBR"}, {"id": 120, "name": "Libya", "code": "LBY"}, {"id": 209, "name": "Liechtenstein", "code": "LIE"}, {"id": 119, "name": "Lithuania", "code": "LTU"}, {"id": 461, "name": "Low-income countries", "code": null}, {"id": 460, "name": "Lower-middle-income countries", "code": null}, {"id": 210, "name": "Luxembourg", "code": "LUX"}, {"id": 262, "name": "Macao", "code": "MAC"}, {"id": 118, "name": "Madagascar", "code": "MDG"}, {"id": 117, "name": "Malawi", "code": "MWI"}, {"id": 116, "name": "Malaysia", "code": "MYS"}, {"id": 211, "name": "Maldives", "code": "MDV"}, {"id": 115, "name": "Mali", "code": "MLI"}, {"id": 212, "name": "Malta", "code": "MLT"}, {"id": 223, "name": "Marshall Islands", "code": "MHL"}, {"id": 114, "name": "Mauritania", "code": "MRT"}, {"id": 213, "name": "Mauritius", "code": "MUS"}, {"id": 113, "name": "Mexico", "code": "MEX"}, {"id": 222, "name": "Micronesia (country)", "code": "FSM"}, {"id": 349173, "name": "Middle East and North Africa (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 458, "name": "Middle-income countries", "code": null}, {"id": 111, "name": "Moldova", "code": "MDA"}, {"id": 214, "name": "Monaco", "code": "MCO"}, {"id": 112, "name": "Mongolia", "code": "MNG"}, {"id": 215, "name": "Montenegro", "code": "MNE"}, {"id": 216, "name": "Montserrat", "code": "MSR"}, {"id": 110, "name": "Morocco", "code": "MAR"}, {"id": 109, "name": "Mozambique", "code": "MOZ"}, {"id": 142, "name": "Myanmar", "code": "MMR"}, {"id": 108, "name": "Namibia", "code": "NAM"}, {"id": 107, "name": "Nepal", "code": "NPL"}, {"id": 5, "name": "Netherlands", "code": "NLD"}, {"id": 220, "name": "New Caledonia", "code": "NCL"}, {"id": 106, "name": "New Zealand", "code": "NZL"}, {"id": 105, "name": "Nicaragua", "code": "NIC"}, {"id": 104, "name": "Niger", "code": "NER"}, {"id": 103, "name": "Nigeria", "code": "NGA"}, {"id": 261, "name": "Niue", "code": "NIU"}, {"id": 278896, "name": "North America (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 128, "name": "North Korea", "code": "PRK"}, {"id": 66, "name": "North Macedonia", "code": "MKD"}, {"id": 266, "name": "Northern Mariana Islands", "code": "MNP"}, {"id": 102, "name": "Norway", "code": "NOR"}, {"id": 217, "name": "Oman", "code": "OMN"}, {"id": 101, "name": "Pakistan", "code": "PAK"}, {"id": 224, "name": "Palau", "code": "PLW"}, {"id": 140, "name": "Palestine", "code": "PSE"}, {"id": 100, "name": "Panama", "code": "PAN"}, {"id": 99, "name": "Papua New Guinea", "code": "PNG"}, {"id": 98, "name": "Paraguay", "code": "PRY"}, {"id": 97, "name": "Peru", "code": "PER"}, {"id": 96, "name": "Philippines", "code": "PHL"}, {"id": 11, "name": "Poland", "code": "POL"}, {"id": 95, "name": "Portugal", "code": "PRT"}, {"id": 93, "name": "Puerto Rico", "code": "PRI"}, {"id": 226, "name": "Qatar", "code": "QAT"}, {"id": 92, "name": "Romania", "code": "ROU"}, {"id": 12, "name": "Russia", "code": "RUS"}, {"id": 91, "name": "Rwanda", "code": "RWA"}, {"id": 260, "name": "Saint Helena", "code": "SHN"}, {"id": 227, "name": "Saint Kitts and Nevis", "code": "KNA"}, {"id": 229, "name": "Saint Lucia", "code": "LCA"}, {"id": 353, "name": "Saint Pierre and Miquelon", "code": "SPM"}, {"id": 230, "name": "Saint Vincent and the Grenadines", "code": "VCT"}, {"id": 239, "name": "Samoa", "code": "WSM"}, {"id": 231, "name": "San Marino", "code": "SMR"}, {"id": 232, "name": "Sao Tome and Principe", "code": "STP"}, {"id": 90, "name": "Saudi Arabia", "code": "SAU"}, {"id": 89, "name": "Senegal", "code": "SEN"}, {"id": 88, "name": "Serbia", "code": "SRB"}, {"id": 233, "name": "Seychelles", "code": "SYC"}, {"id": 87, "name": "Sierra Leone", "code": "SLE"}, {"id": 86, "name": "Singapore", "code": "SGP"}, {"id": 85, "name": "Slovakia", "code": "SVK"}, {"id": 83, "name": "Slovenia", "code": "SVN"}, {"id": 195, "name": "Solomon Islands", "code": "SLB"}, {"id": 82, "name": "Somalia", "code": "SOM"}, {"id": 81, "name": "South Africa", "code": "ZAF"}, {"id": 277956, "name": "South Asia (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 127, "name": "South Korea", "code": "KOR"}, {"id": 258, "name": "South Sudan", "code": "SSD"}, {"id": 367397, "name": "Southern and Eastern Africa (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 9, "name": "Spain", "code": "ESP"}, {"id": 141, "name": "Sri Lanka", "code": "LKA"}, {"id": 277950, "name": "Sub-Saharan Africa (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 79, "name": "Sudan", "code": "SDN"}, {"id": 234, "name": "Suriname", "code": "SUR"}, {"id": 10, "name": "Sweden", "code": "SWE"}, {"id": 7, "name": "Switzerland", "code": "CHE"}, {"id": 77, "name": "Syria", "code": "SYR"}, {"id": 198, "name": "Taiwan", "code": "TWN"}, {"id": 76, "name": "Tajikistan", "code": "TJK"}, {"id": 64, "name": "Tanzania", "code": "TZA"}, {"id": 75, "name": "Thailand", "code": "THA"}, {"id": 74, "name": "Togo", "code": "TGO"}, {"id": 235, "name": "Tonga", "code": "TON"}, {"id": 73, "name": "Trinidad and Tobago", "code": "TTO"}, {"id": 71, "name": "Tunisia", "code": "TUN"}, {"id": 70, "name": "Turkey", "code": "TUR"}, {"id": 69, "name": "Turkmenistan", "code": "TKM"}, {"id": 236, "name": "Turks and Caicos Islands", "code": "TCA"}, {"id": 68, "name": "Uganda", "code": "UGA"}, {"id": 67, "name": "Ukraine", "code": "UKR"}, {"id": 72, "name": "United Arab Emirates", "code": "ARE"}, {"id": 1, "name": "United Kingdom", "code": "GBR"}, {"id": 13, "name": "United States", "code": "USA"}, {"id": 256, "name": "United States Virgin Islands", "code": "VIR"}, {"id": 459, "name": "Upper-middle-income countries", "code": null}, {"id": 63, "name": "Uruguay", "code": "URY"}, {"id": 62, "name": "Uzbekistan", "code": "UZB"}, {"id": 221, "name": "Vanuatu", "code": "VUT"}, {"id": 257, "name": "Vatican", "code": "VAT"}, {"id": 238, "name": "Venezuela", "code": "VEN"}, {"id": 84, "name": "Vietnam", "code": "VNM"}, {"id": 255, "name": "Wallis and Futuna", "code": "WLF"}, {"id": 367398, "name": "Western and Central Africa (WB)", "code": null}, {"id": 355, "name": "World", "code": "OWID_WRL"}, {"id": 61, "name": "Yemen", "code": "YEM"}, {"id": 60, "name": "Zambia", "code": "ZMB"}, {"id": 80, "name": "Zimbabwe", "code": "ZWE"}]}}, "origins": [{"id": 2043, "title": "World Bank Education Statistics (EdStats)", "description": "The World Bank EdStats database offers a comprehensive array of over 8,000 internationally comparable indicators related to education access, progression, completion, literacy, teachers, demographics, and expenditures. It covers the education cycle from pre-primary to vocational and tertiary education, including data on learning outcomes from assessments like PISA, TIMSS, PIRLS, equity data from household surveys, and educational projections up to 2050.", "producer": "World Bank", "citationFull": "World Bank Education Statistics (EdStats), World Bank, 2023. Licence: CC BY 4.0.", "attributionShort": "World Bank", "urlMain": "https://datacatalog.worldbank.org/search/dataset/0038480/education-statistics", "dateAccessed": "2024-11-04", "datePublished": "2024-10-01", "license": {"url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "name": "CC BY 4.0"}}, {"id": 237, "title": "Cross-country literacy rates", "description": "This dataset combines long-run cross-country literacy rates from several sources including the World Bank's WDI, CIA Factbook, and other historical data series. Key sources include Buringh & Van Zanden (2009) for data before 1800, Broadberry and O'Rourke (2010) for 1820 and 1870, and van Zanden et al. (2014) for global estimates from 1820-2000. It also includes recent estimates for high-income countries and available 2016 data from the CIA World Factbook. Note that the sources may have discrepancies and different underlying methodologies, and thus year-to-year changes should be interpreted cautiously.\n", "producer": "Various sources", "citationFull": "Literacy rates (World Bank, CIA World Factbook, and other sources)", "urlMain": "https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.ADT.LITR.ZS", "dateAccessed": "2018-04-18", "datePublished": "2018"}]}