Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka: Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female was 74.4% in 2018. ▲ Rising

Latest (2018)
74.4%
Change on year
down 1.4%
World rank
32nd
of 82 countries
All-time high
76.3%
in 2016
All-time low
56.0%
in 1981
Years of data
8
1981–2018

Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Sri Lanka, 1981–2018

0204060801981199920181981: 56 %2001: 68.8 %2006: 65.2 %2008: 66.6 %2010: 69.8 %2016: 76.3 %2017: 75.4 %2018: 74.4 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Sri Lanka is 74.4%, measured in 2018.

That represents a change of down 1.4% on the previous year and up 11.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Sri Lanka peaked at 76.3% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 56.0%, in 1981.

That places Sri Lanka 32nd out of 82 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the middle of the range.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 56.0% 56.0% 56.0% 1
2000s 66.9% 65.2% 68.8% 3
2010s 74.0% 69.8% 76.3% 4

Countries ranked near Sri Lanka

  1. 29 Brazil 77.9% compare
  2. 30 Mexico 77.4% compare
  3. 31 Suriname 77.3% compare
  4. 33 Thailand 73.3% compare
  5. 34 Macau (China) 72.1% compare
  6. 35 Türkiye 70.4% compare

See the full ranking of 121 places →

More reference data data for Sri Lanka

All data for Sri Lanka →

Frequently asked questions

What is elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Sri Lanka?
Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Sri Lanka was 74.4% in 2018, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female recorded in Sri Lanka?
The highest recorded value was 76.3% in 2016.
What is the lowest elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female recorded in Sri Lanka?
The lowest recorded value was 56.0% in 1981.
How does Sri Lanka rank for elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female?
Sri Lanka ranks 32nd out of 82 countries with data for 2018.
Is elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
Over the last ten years it is up 11.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 8 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Sri Lanka. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 22 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/elderly-literacy-rate-population-65-years-female-percent/sri-lanka/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/elderly-literacy-rate-population-65-years-female-percent/sri-lanka/">Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female in Sri Lanka</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Elderly literacy rate, population 65+ years, female (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
121 places, 2,197 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Percentage of females age 65 and above who can, with understanding, read and write a short, simple statement on their everyday life. Generally, ‘literacy’ also encompasses ‘numeracy’, the ability to make simple arithmetic calculations. This indicator is calculated by dividing the number of female literates aged 65 years and over by the corresponding age group population and multiplying the result by 100.