NMICS 2010 Report - Central Bureau of Statistics

IX.Literacy and EducationLiteracy among young womenThe WFFC and MDGs both have goals on improving adult literacy, with progress being measuredthrough literacy rates and gender gaps. In NMICS 2010, since only a women’s questionnaire wasadministered, the results are only based on females aged 15–24 years. Literacy was assessed eitheron the ability of a woman to read a short, simple statement provided by the interviewer or withschool attendance.Table ED.1 shows the literacy rate for young women aged 15–24 years, based on the women’squestionnaire. Around three quarters (74 percent) of young women in the MFWR were literate, at77 percent for the Mid-Western Region and 71 percent for the Far Western Region. Subregionally, itwas highest in the Mid-Western Hills (84 percent) and lowest in the Mid-Western Mountains (40percent). Urban women (87 percent) were more likely to be literate than rural women (73 percent).Women aged 15–19 years (84 percent) were more likely to be literate than women aged 20–24years (63 percent). Women’s education level and household wealth status both affected thelikelihood of young women being literate. Only six percent of women with no education wereliterate compared to 83 percent with a primary education and 100 percent of women with at least asecondary education. Young women from the richest quintile (90 percent) were almost twice aslikely to be literate as young women from the poorest quintile (49 percent).131