About 7.9 million Ghanaians are illiterate meaning they neither read nor write, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), has said.
They represent people who are six years and older and cannot read and write with understanding.
This is contained in press statement on findings from a new Illiteracy Study report conducted by the GSS and are yet to be launched.
The press statement was to mark the World Illiteracy Day, which marked on September, 8, 2022.
The GSS said out of the 7.9 million who were illiterate, 4.6 million illiterates were females and 3.3 million illiterate males.
According to the GSS said women were disadvantaged in terms of education and the problem “has been persistent overtime.”
“The report also finds that between the 2010 and 2021 Population and Housing Censuses (PHC), 1.2 million more illiterate adults (15 years and older) were added to the population – from 4.3 million in 2010 to 5.5 million in 2021,” the statement said.
It said Ghana had lower levels of adult literacy compared to its comparators (lower middle income and sub-Saharan African countries), after three years of the provisions on illiteracy captured in the Education Strategic Plan (ESP) 2018-2030.
That the statement said had necessitated the production of the 2021 PHC Thematic Report Brief on Illiteracy in Ghana which will be released later this month.
“The report provides direction for stakeholders to target hotspots and drivers of illiteracy in Ghana as it focuses on three broad areas; trends, patterns and correlates of illiteracy,” he said.
The Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) provides comprehensive, reliable, quality, relevant, accurate and timely statistical information to guide national development as stipulated in Section 3 of the Statistical Service Act, 2019 (Act 1003).
The organisation’s vision is to be a trusted provider of statistical services for good governance and its mission to lead the efficient production and management of quality official statistics based on international standards, using competent staff for evidence-based decision-making, in support of national development.
GSS also produces monthly and quarterly data on important economic indicators such as inflation, Consumer Price Index (CPI), Producer Price Index (PPI), Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as well as population, housing, demographic and economic data at the locality, district, and national levels from routine surveys and censuses.
The statistics generated by GSS can be utilised by a wide cross-section of users including the public sector, businesses, academia, civil society organisations and development partners.
BY KINGSLEY ASARE
