Literacy rate in Ghana, and how it differs by region
The 2021 census puts literacy at 69.8 percent for people aged 6 and over. It runs from 87.9 percent in Greater Accra to 32.8 percent in Savannah.
Literacy rate by region, aged 6 and over
- Greater Accra#1 87.9%
- Ashanti#2 78%
- Eastern#3 75.7%
- Central#4 75.2%
- Western#5 72.6%
- Bono#6 71.5%
- Volta#7 70.9%
- Ahafo#8 68.6%
- Western North#9 62.8%
- Bono East#10 56.3%
- Oti#11 50.6%
- Upper East#12 48.1%
- Upper West#13 46%
- Northern#14 41.3%
- North East#15 35.9%
- Savannah#16 32.8%
Census 2021, Ghana Statistical Service. Percentages are our calculation from the printed counts of literate people and all people aged 6 and over. The same group draws the map.
Literacy rate, men against women
MenWomen
Census 2021, Ghana Statistical Service, people aged 6 and over. The rates are printed in the census volume.
The figures
| Literacy rate by sex, Census 2021 | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Men and women aged 6 and over | 74.1 | 65.6 |
What the data show
- Nationally 74.1 percent of men and 65.6 percent of women aged 6 and over are literate, according to Census 2021. That is a gap of 8.5 percentage points.
- Greater Accra has the highest literacy rate at 87.9 percent. Savannah has the lowest at 32.8 percent. North East follows at 35.9 percent, and Northern at 41.3 percent. These are our calculation from the census counts.
- None of the five northern regions or Oti is above 50.6 percent. The five northern regions are Northern, North East, Savannah, Upper East and Upper West.
- The World Bank gives 76.5 percent for adults aged 15 and over in 2021. That covers a different age group from the census figure of 69.8 percent for everyone aged 6 and over, so the two numbers differ.
- The regional percentages are our own division. We divide the literate people aged 6 and over by all people aged 6 and over, using the counts printed in the census volume. The same sum for the whole country gives 69.8 percent, which matches the 69.8 percent the census prints.
- At region level we hold counts, not rates by sex and age. That is why we do not say whether the gap between men and women is closing.
What the data cannot say. We cannot say whether literacy gaps between regions, or between men and women, are closing. We hold one census year, and the table covers everyone aged 6 and over together. We cannot say how literacy differs by ethnic group. The census tables we hold are by region. Other published adult literacy figures, such as the World Bank series, cover a different age group from ours, so they will not match these numbers. The regional rates are our own division of printed counts. The census volume prints regional counts only. We cannot give literacy by district or town from the data we hold.
Questions people ask
- What is the literacy rate in Ghana?
- The 2021 census puts literacy at 69.8 percent for people aged 6 and over. For men it is 74.1 percent and for women 65.6 percent. Adult literacy figures from other sources use a different age group, so they differ.
- Which region has the highest literacy rate in Ghana?
- Greater Accra has the highest literacy rate at 87.9 percent of people aged 6 and over. This is our calculation from the Census 2021 counts.
- Which region has the lowest literacy rate in Ghana?
- Savannah has the lowest at 32.8 percent, followed by North East at 35.9 percent. This is our calculation from the Census 2021 counts.
- What is the literacy rate for women in Ghana?
- The 2021 census gives 65.6 percent for women aged 6 and over, against 74.1 percent for men.
- Which tribe in Ghana is most educated?
- We cannot answer that. The census tables we hold are by region, not by ethnic group, and we do not rank groups.