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UNESCO's Institute for Statistics (UIS) used self-declared surveys to publish their November 2019 global literacy data for all adults aged 15-years and older.

12. Nigeria
(62% literacy)
Nigeria
Learners from the Bethel Nursery and Primary school sit and read books in the I-Read mobile library in Nigeria, on January 30, 2018 AFP PHOTO / STEFAN HEUNIS/Getty Images

Nigeria has a lower than expected level of educational achievement given its moderately high per capita income.

One of the most pressing problems is the low rate of attendance of pre-primary schools, which is only 13 percent in Nigeria compared to an average of 20 percent in sub-Saharan Africa.

UNICEF writes in a statement: "Gender, like geography and poverty, is an important factor in the pattern of educational marginalization.

"States in the north-east and north-west have female primary net attendance rates of 47.7 percent and 47.3 percent, respectively, meaning that more than half of the girls are not in school."
11. Sudan
(61% literacy)
Sudan
Sudan has one of the largest numbers of out-of-school children in the Middle East and North Africa region UNICEF

Sudan has one of the largest numbers of out-of-school children in the Middle East and North Africa region and estimates suggest more than three million children here, aged 5-13 years, are not in school.

War, a lack of awareness about the importance of education and chronic under-development all believed to contribute to the poor schooling of boys and girls in this East African country.
10. Comoros
(59% literacy)