Literacy rate, adult female in East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)
East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income): Literacy rate, adult female was 95.5% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Literacy rate, adult female in East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income), 1976–2024
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in % of females ages 15 and above.
Analysis
In 2024, literacy rate, adult female in East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income) stood at 95.5%. That is the highest value across all 49 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.2% on the previous year and up 2.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rate, adult female in East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income) peaked at 95.5% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 50.2%, in 1976.
That places East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income) 7th out of 39 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 49 years of available data.
Literacy rate, adult female in East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income), year by year
| Year | % of females ages 15 and above | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 50.2% | — |
| 1977 | 50.4% | +0.4% |
| 1978 | 51.9% | +3.0% |
| 1979 | 53.7% | +3.4% |
| 1980 | 55.3% | +2.9% |
| 1981 | 56.8% | +2.7% |
| 1982 | 58.1% | +2.4% |
| 1983 | 59.5% | +2.3% |
| 1984 | 60.9% | +2.4% |
| 1985 | 62.3% | +2.2% |
| 1986 | 63.5% | +1.9% |
| 1987 | 64.9% | +2.3% |
| 1988 | 70.6% | +8.7% |
| 1989 | 71.6% | +1.3% |
| 1990 | 72.5% | +1.2% |
| 1991 | 73.2% | +1.1% |
| 1992 | 74.0% | +1.0% |
| 1993 | 74.7% | +1.0% |
| 1994 | 75.5% | +1.0% |
| 1995 | 76.3% | +1.0% |
| 1996 | 77.0% | +0.9% |
| 1997 | 85.0% | +10.4% |
| 1998 | 85.5% | +0.6% |
| 1999 | 85.9% | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 86.4% | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 86.9% | +0.6% |
| 2002 | 87.4% | +0.6% |
| 2003 | 87.9% | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 88.4% | +0.5% |
| 2005 | 88.8% | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 89.3% | +0.6% |
| 2007 | 91.0% | +1.9% |
| 2008 | 91.5% | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 91.9% | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 92.0% | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 92.3% | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 92.6% | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 92.8% | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 93.3% | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 93.6% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 93.9% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 94.2% | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 94.3% | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 94.5% | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 94.8% | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 95.0% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 95.2% | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 95.3% | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 95.5% | +0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 51.6% | 50.2% | 53.7% | 4 |
| 1980s | 62.3% | 55.3% | 71.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 78.0% | 72.5% | 85.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 89.0% | 86.4% | 91.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 93.3% | 92.0% | 94.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 95.2% | 94.8% | 95.5% | 5 |
Countries ranked near East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)
More gender data for East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)
- Labor force, female 509.13 million (2025)
- Labor force, female, per capita 0.2375 units per person (2025)
- Labor force, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Labor force, female, annual growth rate 0.3756 % change on previous year (2025)
- Labor force, female, per square kilometre 31.74 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Ratio of female to male youth unemployment rate (% ages 15-24) 93.4% (2025)
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female 13.88 years (2019)
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, male 13.37 years (2019)
- Proportion of women in ministerial level positions 11.0% (2025)
- Own-account workers, female (% of female employment) 23.8% (2016)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rate, adult female in East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)?
- Literacy rate, adult female in East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income) was 95.5% in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest literacy rate, adult female recorded in East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)?
- The highest recorded value was 95.5% in 2024.
- What is the lowest literacy rate, adult female recorded in East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)?
- The lowest recorded value was 50.2% in 1976.
- How does East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income) rank for literacy rate, adult female?
- East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income) ranks 7th out of 39 groups with data for 2024.
- Is literacy rate, adult female rising or falling in East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income) data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Literacy rate, adult female (% of females ages 15 and above). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
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.