Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS)

 On the Eve of International Literacy Day, 8^th September

On the eve of the International Literacy Day, 8^th September 2018, Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics announced that there were about 95 thousands illiterate persons among Palestinian population[1] aged 15 years and above in 2017. According to the United Nations for Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) – the illiterate person applies to persons unable to read and write with understanding a simple statement related to one’s daily life.

The illiteracy rates reduced in Palestine from 13.9% in 1997 to 3.3% in 2017

Illiteracy rates among Palestinian population aged 15 years and above in Palestine fell in the period 1997-2017 from 13.9% to 3.3%. For males, the rate fell from 7.8% in 1997 to 1.7% in 2017, while for females it fell from 20.3% to 5.0% over the same period.

Illiteracy rates among Palestinian population (15 years and above) in Palestine by sex for years 1997, 2000-2017

The illiteracy rate among females is higher than of males

In 2017, the illiteracy rate among Palestinian population 15 years and above in Palestine was 3.3% (95,450 illiterate): 3.6% in the West Bank (62,736 illiterate) and 3.0% in Gaza Strip (32,714 illiterate). The illiteracy rate varies considerably between sexes: 1.7% for males (24,590 illiterate) compared to 5.0% for females (70,860 illiterate) in the same year. The illiteracy rate among Palestinian population with difficulties/disabilities 21.4% (46,729 illiterate) for the same age group for year 2017.

More than half of illiterates are elderly

In 2017, the illiteracy rate among older persons aged 65 years and above attained 34.6% (52,165 illiterate). The rate was 4.5% in the 45-64 year age group (24,656 illiterate), 1.3% in the 30-44 year age group (10,068 illiterate) and 0.6% among young people aged between 15-29 years (8,561 illiterate) in the same year.

The illiteracy rate varies considerably between age groups, 65 years and above is the highest rate, while the lowest rate is among persons aged 30-44 years or 15-29 years.

Percentage distribution for Palestinian illiterate population (15 years and above) in Palestine by year age group,  2017

The illiteracy rate is the highest in rural areas compared to other localities

In 2017, the illiteracy rate among rural localities reached 4.8% (20,228 illiterate), while scored 3.3% in the refugee camps (7,898 illiterate) and 3.1% (67,324 illiterate) in urban areas. In 2017, the male illiteracy rate was highest in rural localities, followed by urban areas and refugee camps respectively. Female illiteracy rate was highest in rural localities, followed by refugee camps and urban areas respectively.

Illiteracy rate among Palestinian population (15 years and above) in Palestine by locality type and sex, 2017

The highest illiteracy rate was in Jericho and Al Aghwar Governorate

In 2017, the highest illiteracy rate among Palestinian population aged 15 years and above was in Jericho and Al Aghwar governorate, scoring 5.5% (1,623 illiterate),

followed by in Tubas and Northern Valley governorate, scoring 4.7% (1,808 illiterate). The lowest rate was in Jerusalem and Gaza governorates with 2.3% (5,752 illiterate in Jerusalem governorate and 8,778 illiterate in Gaza governorate).

Illiteracy rate and  illiterate Palestinian population (15 years and above) by governorate, 2017

The illiteracy rate in Palestine is one of the lowest in the world

According to UNESCO Institute for Statistics, the illiteracy rate among persons 15 years and above in Arab States was 24.8% (about 64.6 million illiterate) in 2016: for males, 17.4% (23.7 million illiterate) compared to 32.8% for females (40.9 million illiterate). For the same year, the rate was 13.8% (about 750.1 million illiterate) in the world among the same age group: for males. 10.2% (277.2 million illiterate) compared to 17.3% for females (472.9 million illiterate).