Global literacy rates have improved in past 50 years- UNESCO


Considerable efforts by countries and organizations have helped raise the global literacy rates for adults and children but much work remains to be done.

That's what the Director-General of the United Nations education organization, UNESCO said during the launch of the 50th International Literacy Day.

Adult literacy rates went from 61 per cent in 1960 to 85 per cent in 2015. Meanwhile the literacy rates for children worldwide reached an encouraging 90 per cent.

However, globally there are 758 million adults who cannot read or write a simple sentence; two thirds of them are women.

The greatest bottlenecks for progress are in Africa, The UNESCO chief Irina Bokova warned.


GBC