Girls' Education: The 2013 Report Card originally appeared on Teach.com and was produced in conjunction with the launch of Education and Skills 2.0: New Targets and Innovative Approaches, a new book from the World Economic Forum's Global Agenda Council on Education and Skills.

1. GIRLS’ EDUCATION
THE 2013 REPORT CARD
While girls’ education has come a long way since 1990, disparities
between girls’ and boys’ school success still exist in many parts of
the world. This infographic offers an overview of the current state
of girls’ education.
LITERACY
92%
87%
worldwide literacy rate
for males ages 15-24
worldwide literacy rate
for females ages 15-24
The gap has closed since 1990, when the global literacy rate for females in
this age group was 79%, as compared with 88% for males.1
The largest gender discrepancies in literacy occur in:1
SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA
SOUTH ASIA
MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA
Of the 774 million illiterate people in the world, two-thirds are female.2
PRIMARY ENROLLMENT1
Girls have nearly caught up to boys in primary enrollment.
This is true at all income levels — a marked change since 1990,
when girls’ enrollment was far lower than that of boys (except in
high-income countries).
Regions where significant enrollment disparities still exist:
SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA
SOUTH ASIA
A few countries still stand out for the low fraction of girls
enrolled in primary school:
41%
ERITREA
MALI
NIGERIA
PAKISTAN
75%
79%
85%
SECONDARY ENROLLMENT1
Girls’ enrollment in secondary education has increased substantially
since 1990 and, on a global basis, is nearly equal to that of males.
DISPARITIES STILL EXIST
49% rate for girls in low
enrollment
54% rate for boys in low
enrollment
and lower-middle income countries
and lower-middle income countries
Regions with the largest enrollment disparities:
SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA
SOUTH ASIA
Countries with an exceptionally low percentage of girls
enrolled in secondary school:
15%
CHAD
PAKISTAN
TANZANIA
29%
28%
In Latin America and Caribbean, 93% of girls are enrolled in
secondary school, ahead of boys at 87%.
Countries where girls’ enrollment exceeds boys’:
ARGENTINA
BANGLADESH
HONDURAS
LESOTHO
COLOMBIA
QATAR
URUGUAY
OUT-OF-SCHOOL CHILDREN2
Number of girls not enrolled in school, worldwide:
Of primary school age:
31 MILLION
Of lower secondary school:
34 MILLION
Together, three countries – Nigeria, Pakistan and Ethiopia – have around
9.5 million girls of primary school age out of school
NEARLY ONE-THIRD OF THE WORLD’S TOTAL.
TERTIARY ENROLLMENT1
WORLDWIDE,
more females than males are enrolled in higher education.
The disparity is greatest in high-income countries (82% versus 65%),
and is reversed in low- and lower-middle-income countries.
COMPLETION RATE AND TRANSITIONS
Globally, the primary completion rate for girls matches
that of boys—a big change since 1990.1
Girls still fall well behind in:1
SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA
MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA
In developing countries, almost
25% OF YOUNG WOMEN (AGED 15-24)
– a total of 116 million – have never completed primary school,
meaning they lack the needed skills for many occupations.2
GRADE REPETITION RATES1
In general, both primary and secondary repetition rates are
similar for girls and boys.
EXCEPTIONS:
MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
1 World Development Indicators 2013
2 UNESCO Institute for Statistics
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