Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in South Africa

South Africa: Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity was 0.9861 GPIA in 2017. ▬ Flat

Latest (2017)
0.9861 GPIA
Change on year
up 0.7%
World rank
30th
of 87 countries
All-time high
0.9861 GPIA
in 2017
All-time low
0.9595 GPIA
in 2007
Years of data
10
1980–2017

Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in South Africa, 1980–2017

00.20.40.60.811980199820171980: 0.965 GPIA1996: 0.963 GPIA2007: 0.96 GPIA2009: 0.975 GPIA2010: 0.974 GPIA2011: 0.977 GPIA2012: 0.975 GPIA2014: 0.977 GPIA2015: 0.979 GPIA2017: 0.986 GPIA

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.

Analysis

In 2017, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in South Africa stood at 0.9861 GPIA. That is the highest value across all 10 years on record.

That represents a change of up 0.7% on the previous year and up 2.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in South Africa peaked at 0.9861 GPIA in 2017 and was at its lowest, 0.9595 GPIA, in 2007.

South Africa ranks 30th of 87 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in South Africa, year by year

Annual values for Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity index (GPIA) in South Africa, 1980 to 2017.
Year GPIA Change
1980 0.9649 GPIA
1996 0.9626 GPIA -0.2%
2007 0.9595 GPIA -0.3%
2009 0.975 GPIA +1.6%
2010 0.9742 GPIA -0.1%
2011 0.9767 GPIA +0.3%
2012 0.975 GPIA -0.2%
2014 0.9768 GPIA +0.2%
2015 0.9792 GPIA +0.2%
2017 0.9861 GPIA +0.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 0.9649 GPIA 0.9649 GPIA 0.9649 GPIA 1
1990s 0.9626 GPIA 0.9626 GPIA 0.9626 GPIA 1
2000s 0.9672 GPIA 0.9595 GPIA 0.975 GPIA 2
2010s 0.978 GPIA 0.9742 GPIA 0.9861 GPIA 6

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 27 Greece 0.9887 GPIA compare
  2. 28 Panama 0.9887 GPIA compare
  3. 29 Montenegro 0.9881 GPIA compare
  4. 31 Mexico 0.9831 GPIA compare
  5. 32 Brunei Darussalam 0.9821 GPIA compare
  6. 33 Ecuador 0.9819 GPIA compare

See the full ranking of 124 places →

More reference data data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in South Africa?
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in South Africa was 0.9861 GPIA in 2017, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 0.9861 GPIA in 2017.
What is the lowest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 0.9595 GPIA in 2007.
How does South Africa rank for adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity?
South Africa ranks 30th out of 87 countries with data for 2017.
Is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 2.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this South Africa data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity index (GPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 07 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/adult-literacy-rate-population-15-years-adjusted-gender-parity-index-gpia/south-africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, adjusted gender parity index (GPIA)
Unit
GPIA
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
124 places, 2,183 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

The Adjusted Gender Parity Index (GPIA) is calculated by dividing the female value for the indicator by the male value for the indicator. If the resulting value exceeds 1, the ratio is inverted and subtracted from 2. The adjusted gender parity index is symmetrical around 1 and lies in the range 0-2. An adjusted GPI equal to 1 indicates parity between females and males. In general, a value less than 1 indicates disparity in favor of males and a value greater than 1 indicates disparity in favor of females. For more information, consult the UNESCO Institute for Statistics: http://uis.unesco.org/