Get the facts about education in developing countries and how it affects children and adults.

Poverty and education are intertwined. In fact, one of the biggest contributors to global poverty is lack of access to education. The following facts about education are a snapshot of the problem and indicate how difficult it is for children in poverty to overcome the obstacles they face and escape their circumstances.

In order to effectively fight poverty around the world, the lack of education for children in developing countries, especially for girls, must be addressed.

In 2015, the total number of illiterate adults reached 745.1 million. 8

About 114 million young people, still lack basic reading and writing skills. 6 Two-thirds (63 percent) are women 7

Two-thirds (63 percent) are women Better enforcement of early marriage laws would increase average years of schooling for women in sub-Saharan Africa by 39 percent. 7

Three regions have achieved gender parity among adults and youth with regard to literacy: the Caucasus and Central Asia, developed regions, and Latin America and the Caribbean. Eastern Asia, South-Eastern Asia and Western Asia have achieved gender parity for youth literacy but not for adult literacy. 1

Northern Africa, Southern Asia and sub-Saharan Africa are far from gender parity. In Southern Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, the adult literacy rate indicates that women aged 15 years and older are nearly one-quarter less likely to be literate than men in the same age group. 1

Globally, women aged 15 years and older are nine percent less likely to be literate than men, and young women between 15 and 24 years are four percent less likely to be literate than young men. 1