KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's literacy rate stands at 94.64 per cent, National Library of Malaysia director-general Datuk Nafisah Ahmad said today, citing a new United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) report.
The figure is stated in the “Adult and Youth Literacy: National Regional and Global Trends 1985-2015” report, published by the Unesco Institute for Statistics (UIS), which classified literacy among the world’s population, aged 15 years and above.
"The standard of measurement set by the UIS is very high. We make reference to its report to avert confusion," she said when asked to comment on recent media reports on Malaysia's literacy rate being only 55 per cent.
However, Nafisah said the National Library is focusing on improving reading habits among Malaysians, as it is still at an unsatisfactory level.
"On average, each Malaysian only reads 15 books in a year, based on an interim study the National Library conducted in 2014. Our focus now is on developing a Malaysian society with an improved reading habit," she said. -- BERNAMA