Question

. Which of the following statements best describes literacy rates in North Africa? A. Literacy rates are decreasing in the region. B. Literacy rates are increasing in the region, and the gap between men and women is decreasing. C. Literacy rates are increasing in the region, but the gap between men and women is staying the same. D. Literacy rates are staying about the same in the region.

Answer 1

The answer is  B. Literacy rates are increasing in the region, and the gap between men and women is decreasing. Annual regional-level literacy estimates based on national data and the Unesco  Institute  for Statistics projections from 1990 to 2016  tell us that Eastern and South-Eastern Asia, Southern Asia, and Northern Africa and Western Asia have made the greatest progress in improving adult literacy over the past 26 years .

According to the Fact Sheet No. 45 dated  September 2017 of the Unesco  Institute  for Statistics, Northern Africa and Western Asia literacy rate went from 64% to 81. The youth literacy rate increased in Northern Africa and Western Asia from 80% to 90% and sub-Saharan Africa  from 65% to 75%. Female literacy rates-lower than male literacy rates at the start of the period - generally grew faster than male literacy rates between 1990 and 2016.Thus, the gap between men and women has decreased  in all regions over the past 26 years.  

Answer 2

The proportion of education vary massively by country throughout Africa; and gender differences in literacy are noticeable.

The age factor is also significant as younger generations are more likely to be literate than older generations in North Africa as in other parts of the world.

In the 1990s, literacy rates in North Africa were around 40-60%, with Libya, Tunisia and Algeria being around  the top of the list; around 2010 the rate went up to around 84%, and female literacy in particular from 39% in 1990 to around 70% percent in 2007. The rest of North African countries oscillated around 50-60%.

There have been radical recent improvements according to UNESCO recent reports in 2017, North African people in general are far more likely to be literate than 50 years ago, coming from 64% to 81% ; and young people in particular, from 80% to 90%.

Even with the progress, gender disparity remains persistent; women aged 15 to 24 are still less likely to have basic literacy than men, which highlights the need for greater investments. The answer would be (C)