960405

China literacy

rates rising

BEIJING: China has reduced the level of illiteracy among its population to 12.01 percent at the end of 1995, the Xinhua news agency said on Friday, quoting official figures.

China had 145 million people over the age of 15 who were illiterate or semi-literate at the end of 1995, which is 12.01 percent of the total population and a drop of 3.87 percentage points from 1990, the agency said.

However, unofficial statistics have put women's illiteracy as high as 30 percent of the female population because of inferior schooling opportunities and high drop-out rates for girls.

Of China's educated people, there has been a 54.71 percent rise in the number educated to technical college or university level to 24.94 million from 16.12 million in 1990.

Persons with a post-secondary education now account for 2.72 percent of China's educated people, it said.-Reuter