Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female in Bangladesh

Bangladesh: Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female was 65.5% in 2019. ▲ Rising

Latest (2019)
65.5%
Change on year
up 1.7%
World rank
28th
of 36 countries
All-time high
65.5%
in 2019
All-time low
15.3%
in 1981
Years of data
12
1981–2019

Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female in Bangladesh, 1981–2019

2040601981200020191981: 15.3 %1991: 21.5 %2001: 35.9 %2011: 48 %2012: 46.6 %2013: 53.9 %2014: 53.7 %2015: 54.9 %2016: 62.9 %2017: 63.2 %2018: 64.4 %2019: 65.5 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

Bangladesh recorded 65.5% for adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female in 2019. That is the highest value across all 12 years on record.

That represents a change of up 1.7% on the previous year and up 36.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female in Bangladesh peaked at 65.5% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 15.3%, in 1981.

That places Bangladesh 28th out of 36 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.

Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female in Bangladesh, year by year

Annual values for Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female (%) in Bangladesh, 1981 to 2019.
Year % Change
1981 15.3%
1991 21.5% +40.2%
2001 35.9% +67.3%
2011 48.0% +33.5%
2012 46.6% -2.8%
2013 53.9% +15.5%
2014 53.7% -0.2%
2015 54.9% +2.1%
2016 62.9% +14.6%
2017 63.2% +0.5%
2018 64.4% +1.8%
2019 65.5% +1.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 15.3% 15.3% 15.3% 1
1990s 21.5% 21.5% 21.5% 1
2000s 35.9% 35.9% 35.9% 1
2010s 57.0% 46.6% 65.5% 9

Countries ranked near Bangladesh

  1. 25 Cambodia 70.9% compare
  2. 26 Iran, Islamic Republic of 66.5% compare
  3. 27 Guatemala 65.6% compare
  4. 29 Egypt 56.3% compare
  5. 30 Uganda 55.6% compare
  6. 31 Morocco 41.1% compare

See the full ranking of 36 places →

More reference data data for Bangladesh

All data for Bangladesh →

Frequently asked questions

What is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female in Bangladesh?
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female in Bangladesh was 65.5% in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female recorded in Bangladesh?
The highest recorded value was 65.5% in 2019.
What is the lowest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female recorded in Bangladesh?
The lowest recorded value was 15.3% in 1981.
How does Bangladesh rank for adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female?
Bangladesh ranks 28th out of 36 countries with data for 2019.
Is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female rising or falling in Bangladesh?
Over the last ten years it is up 36.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Bangladesh data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female in Bangladesh. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 10 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/adult-literacy-rate-population-15-years-rural-female-percent/bangladesh/

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About this data

Indicator
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, female (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
36 places, 331 data points, 1976–2019
Last refreshed

Total number of females in rural areas over age 15 who cannot both read and write with understanding a short simple statement on their everyday life. For more information, consult the UNESCO Institute of Statistics website: http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/