One in 6 people can't read

Approximately one sixth of humanity is functionally illiterate and two-thirds of that figure are women, according to new figures. The State of the World's Children 1999 report, published by UNICEF, also reveals that 130 million children in the developing world, or 21 per cent of the total, leave school before grade five and without basic literacy or numeracy skills.

The report also repeats that over 20 per cent of adults in 12 selected industrialised countries, including Ireland, the UK, and the US, are functionally illiterate.

Altogether, at 855 million, the number of illiterate people in the world equals the total population of the world's top 31 industrialised countries (including Ireland). UNICEF estimates that $7 billion dollars a year over the next 10 years would enable universal enrolment at primary level to be achieved throughout the world. Putting that figure in context, it points out that Europeans spend $11 million a year on ice cream. It also criticises the large debt burden on developing countries which prevents spending on education. Tanzania, where six times more is spent in debt repayment than on education, is cited as an example. Ms Maura Quinn, director of UNICEF Ireland, said this year's report also showed the direct correlation between years of schooling and child mortality rates.

This was especially the case where girls were concerned, "whose gender often leads to subsistence chores instead of school, or who are marginalised in the classroom," she said.

The report concludes that "educated women are likely to have smaller families and healthier children who themselves are likely to be better educated than children of uneducated women. Over time, lower child mortality leads to behavioural change, lowering fertility.

"Smaller household size improves the care of children, and lower fertility reduces the size of school age population."