The bar chart below shows estimated world illiteracy rates by region and by gender for the last year. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The bar chart beside illustrates approximate

illiteracy

rates

in the world, divided by region and by gender, in a specific year. The figures in the vertical axis are in percentage. The male and female sections are represented by the colours blue and purple, respectively. The horizontal axis shows the regions.

Overall

, South Asia has the highest

rates

of

illiteracy

,

whereas

Developed Countries have the lowest, for both genders. Most

women

in Arab States and Sub-Saharan Africa do not know how to read and write properly. In all areas,

women

have higher

illiteracy

rates

than men. Men from Latin America and the Caribbean have

illiteracy

rates

below 10%,

while

women

have

rates

not over 20%. Males from Sub-Saharan Africa present almost three times more

illiteracy

than males from Latin America and the Caribbean. The highest difference between men and

women

is in Arab States,

while

the lowest is in Developed Nations. There is a huge difference in literacy when we compare region and gender around the planet.