1. YMCA Global Awareness Team

2. „Literacy is the ability to identify, understand, interpret,
create, communicate and compute, using printed and
written materials associated with varying contexts.
Literacy involves a continuum of learning in enabling
individuals to achieve his or her goals, develop his or
her knowledge and potential and participate fully in
community and wider society‟ (UNESCO 2005: 21).

3. UNDERSTANDING LITERACY:
It’s Not a Matter of Have or
Have Not
It is important to recognize that literacy is not a
have or have not ability, instead, literacy is
assessed at different levels of competency in
different areas including reading, writing and
numeracy.

4. LITERACY IN CANADA:
Still room for Improvement
• Four out of 10 adult Canadians, age 16 to 65 - representing 9
million Canadians - struggle with low literacy.
• 15% of adult Canadians 16 years+ are in the lowest level of literacy
(Level 1)
• 27% of Canadians are in Level 2
• 30% of high school students leave school without a diploma

5. LITERACY IN CANADA:
HEALTH CONCERNS
• 1 in 4 adults can’t read dosages and directions on over-the-counter or
prescription medicines or read health and wellness information
• Low literate adults are 2.5 times more likely to experience unemployment
compared to those at Level 3 +
•Those aged 16 to 65 who reported being in poor physical health scored
lower in document literacy than did those reporting better health.

6. LITERACY IN CANADA:
EMPLOYMENT
• Canadians with Level 1 literacy experience daily challenges such as:
completing a job application form; using online banking; completing the
online application for Employment Insurance
• People with low proficiency in literacy tend to have lower rates of
employment, and they tend to work in occupations with lower skill
requirements.
• Low literate adults are 2.5 times more likely to experience unemployment
compared to those at Level 3 +
• 43% of working age Canadians at level 1 literacy derive income from
Employment Insurance or Social Assistance compared to 14% of those at the
highest levels

7. LITERACY IN CANADA:
IMPACTS ON THE WORKPLACE
1 out of 3 Canadian employers experience basic skills-related problems with their
workforce, yet less than 1 out of 10 employers are involved in literacy programs or
referrals to programs. The impact of Basic Skills Programs on Canadian Workplace,
reports on 86 employer and employee representatives from 53 workplaces which
had participated in basic skills training for at least 1 year:
• 79% reported increased productivity
• 84% reported improvements in the quality of people’s work
• 73% reported an increase in the work effort
• 87% reported more competent use of workplace based technology
• 82% reported increased health and safety
• 97% reported increased self confidence that benefits the workplace

8. LITERACY IN CANADA:
AFFECTS ON COMMUNITY
• Literacy proficiency improves chances of employment, builds self-
confidence and enables discussions and actions that affect the welfare
of individuals and their community.
• Greater understanding of social and political issues means a more
informed opinion at the ballot box, better understanding of issues, and
greater confidence in discussing them. This, in turn, encourages
leadership and engagement in public debate.

9. LITERACY IN CANADA:
ONE FINAL NOTE…
By raising literacy scores by 1%
in Canada, Canada’s national
economic productivity is
expected to increase by 2.5% or
$18 billion per year

10. LITERACY AND ITS GLOBAL
IMPACT
“Education is both a human right in
itself and an indispensable
means of realizing other human
rights.”
UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights 1999

11. LITERACY AND HUMAN RIGHTS
Literacy should be recognized as a tool to pursue
civil, political, economic or social
rights. It also provides individuals with the ability to recognize and
exercise their legal rights, as well as participate politically in society.
Literacy classes provide a place for learners, in particular
women, gain access to and develop a better understanding of their
rights and how to claim, defend and promote them.

12. LITERACY, INCLUSION AND
EQUITY
At a global level, the challenge of literacy inequalities remains
undiminished. Ensuring adequate and appropriate provision to
diverse population groups will require that improvements in mass
literacy go hand-in-hand with sensitivity to linguistic and cultural
diversity among minority and indigenous populations. In addition,
provision for women, young people, rural populations and the poor
is often inadequate. (UNESCO 2005: 29)

13. LITERACY AND INCLUSION
In order for literacy to be inclusive, it needs to be recognized and
respected that every individual, community and society presents
its own unique ways of learning, interpreting and accessing
programs. It cannot be assumed that a one size fits all approach to
literacy and learning will work.

14. LITERACY AND GENDER
DISPARITIES WORLDWIDE
• 63 per cent of the illiterate population were women in 1985–1994 as compared to 64 per
cent in 2000–2006.
• The gender gap has improved most in the Arab States, and in South, West and East
Asia.
• In Sub-Saharan Africa, the female literacy rate has risen from 45 per cent to 53 per cent,
but the proportion of illiterate women within the total illiterate population has increased
slightly, from 61 per cent to 62 per cent.
• In Pakistan, the gender disparity in literacy rates is much greater in rural areas than in
urban areas.
• In South Asia as a whole, the gender gap in school enrolments is particularly evident in
remote areas.
• Significantly, the Latin American countries with large indigenous communities
(Guatemala, Peru and Bolivia) have lower literacy rates for women as compared to the
population as a whole.

15. LITERACY AND POVERTY
Because of the complex nature of poverty, there is no single solution to combat
it. Competence in literacy is however, an essential component of the multi-
faceted solution to poverty.
Poverty reduction, economic growth and wealth

16. LITERACY AND POVERTY
Although the Millennium Development Goals include the prioritisation of funding
for primary education (Goal 2), adult literacy or non-formal education was
not formally addressed. This means that a formal connection between
literacy and poverty was not present however, it is clear that a strong link
exists between literacy and poverty. For example, literate adults are more
likely to send their children to school (Goal 2), and the learning of HIV and
AIDS prevention through literacy (Goal 6).

17. GLOBAL LITERACY CHALLENGE
UNESCO’s Global Literacy Challenge
suggests 3 key actions that need to be
taken:
Mobilizing stronger commitment to literacy:
• Greater advocacy
• Greater political will and stronger policies
• Clearer picture of real needs
• More dynamic partnerships

18. GLOBAL LITERACY CHALLENGE
Reinforcing more effective literacy
programme delivery:
• Increasing scale and quality of delivery
• Strengthened capacity development of literacy actors
• Enriching the literate environment
• More focused attention on numeracy
• Better exchange of information on what works
• Research to provide reliable data and evidence-
based alternatives

19. GLOBAL LITERACY CHALLENGE
Harnessing new resources for literacy:
• More information on literacy programme costs
• Increased budgets
• Increased financial support from donors

20. WHAT CAN WE DO?
• Donate books and reading materials to your local school or community
centre
• Start a reading club
• Volunteer to teach literacy classes or become a one to one tutor in your
community
• Become a mentor of a non-literate person
• Send your literacy stories to joinliteracy@unesco.org

21. SOURCES
• Project Read
• ABC Life Literacy Canada
• Community Literacy of Ontario
• UNESCO.org (Global Literacy Challenge)
• UN.org