Schools, educational centres and the government of Jordan must be doing something right, as the country’s illiteracy rate has gone down to 4.2 percent, in comparison with 6.8 percent, in the period between 2000-2016.

The stats were released by the Department of Statistics to mark International Literacy Day (September 8).

Findings revealed that the illiteracy rate for men was recorded at 3.5 percent, while it was 10 percent for women.

Ma’an and Mafraq recorded the highest percentage of illiteracy for the year 2016, while the capital Amman recorded the lowest illiteracy percentage in the country.

The highest percentage of illiteracy was concentrated in the age group 65 years and over, which makes up 39 percent of the Kingdom’s population.

According to the report, the illiteracy rate for youths between the ages of 15-24 dropped to 0.8 percent.

A large number of Jordanian millennials are showing an increased interest in reading, which could be one contributing factor to the drop in illiteracy rate amongst youths in Jordan.

Disclaimer: This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition