Literacy and Education Literacy among young women Youth and adult literacy rates are the test of an educational system. Basic reading, writing and numeracy skills are essential to individual well-being and societal development. Comparing adult literacy rates to youth literacy rates shows some improvement over time; young people are more likely to be able to read than adults. Regional and gender differences continue, however. Literacy is lowest in least developed countries and is higher for males than females15. Overall, only 44 percent of young women aged 15-24 years are literate. Among women living in the poorest households, the literacy rate is as low as 14 percent. In contrast, the literacy rate is 65 percent among women in the richest households. The effect of poverty/ social economic status on access to education is clearly enormous.
