The country’s latest literacy rate stands at 66 per cent. This is according to the Bhutan Living Standards Survey (BLSS) Report 2017.
The report says the country’s literacy has increased by three per cent between 2012 and 2017. The rise is being attributed to the significant increase in the number of people aged 15 to 30.
The report reveals that literacy rate is substantially high in urban areas with 81.7 per cent as opposed to 58.3 per cent in rural areas.
According to the report, youth literacy rate too is likely to be high in urban areas. The youth here refers to young people aged 15 to 24.
The BLSS 2017 also found more number of men to be literate than women. About 73 per cent of the male population is literate compared to 59 per cent literate female population.
Dzongkhag wise, Bumthang has the highest adult literacy rate followed by Thimphu. As for the Thromdes, Gelegphu leads with an adult literacy rate of 85.4 per cent.
The National Statistics Bureau (NSB) conducted the BLSS 2017 in March and April this year with financial and technical support from the World Bank.
The BLSS 2017 is the fourth in the series and followed the Living Standard Measurement Study (LSMS) methodology developed by the researchers at the World Bank.
The report provides latest information on demographics, education, health, employment, housing, income, asset ownership, public facilities, access to services, credit, and self-rate poverty and happiness.
The BLSS 2017 was conducted to provide the government with data for socio economic policy and planning, particularly for the formulation of future poverty reduction policies and strategies.
