What share of adults can do arithmetic in Shan State?

The 2019 numeracy rate (able to do simple arithmetic) among adults aged 15 and over in Shan State was 80.7% (men 84.2%, women 77.6%), against 89.5% across Myanmar.

Education in Shan, Myanmar: official figures

In 2019 72.6% of adults aged 15 and over in Shan State could read and write (men 77.5%, women 68.1%), against 89.1% nationally; that is 2nd lowest of 15 states and regions.

How many people in Shan State have never been to school?

25.3% of people aged 3 and over in Shan State had never attended school in 2019 (23.3% of males, 27.2% of females), against 11.0% for Myanmar; this is the highest of 15.

Source: Department of Population, Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population · saved copy

What was the literacy rate in Shan State in the 2014 census?

The 2014 census recorded a literacy rate of 64.6% among people aged 15 and over in Shan State (men 70.3%, women 59.4%), with 1,314,570 adults who could not read and write; the national rate was 89.5%.

Source: Department of Population, Ministry of Immigration and Population · saved copy

Is there a gap between men and women in literacy in Shan State?

Literacy among women in Shan State was 9.4 percentage points below that of men in 2019 (68.1% against 77.5%); across Myanmar the gap was 6.1 points.

Source: Department of Population, Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population · saved copy

Has literacy in Shan State improved?

Measured literacy among adults in Shan State was 64.6% in the 2014 census and 72.6% in the 2019 survey (+8.0 points). The two sources use different survey methods, so small changes should be read with care.

Source: Department of Population, Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population · saved copy

How Shan compares with other states

Adult literacy rate (aged 15+) (2019)

Shan ranks 14 of 15, highest first.

Rank	Region	Adult literacy rate (aged 15+)
9	Rakhine	88.6%
10	Kachin	88.5%
11	Kayah	83.1%
12	Chin	81.3%
13	Mon	80.5%
14	Shan	72.6%
15	Kayin	70.9%

Source: Department of Population, Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population · saved copy

Adult numeracy rate (aged 15+) (2019)

Shan ranks 14 of 15, highest first.

Rank	Region	Adult numeracy rate (aged 15+)
9	Kachin	89.0%
10	Rakhine	89.0%
11	Tanintharyi	88.3%
12	Mon	82.4%
13	Chin	81.9%
14	Shan	80.7%
15	Kayin	72.6%

Source: Department of Population, Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population · saved copy

Share of people aged 3+ who never attended school (2019)

Shan ranks 1 of 15, highest first.

Rank	Region	Share of people aged 3+ who never attended school
1	Shan	25.3%
2	Kayin	22.6%
3	Chin	14.4%
4	Mon	12.3%
5	Magway	11.7%
6	Kayah	11.5%
7	Sagaing	10.4%

Source: Department of Population, Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population · saved copy

Adult literacy rate (aged 15+), census (2014)

Shan ranks 15 of 15, highest first.

Rank	Region	Adult literacy rate (aged 15+), census
9	Kachin	91.7%
10	Mon	86.6%
11	Rakhine	84.7%
12	Kayah	82.1%
13	Chin	79.4%
14	Kayin	74.4%
15	Shan	64.6%

Source: Department of Population, Ministry of Immigration and Population · saved copy

More on Shan: overview · economy and jobs · health · poverty and living standards · Myanmar

Sources

Department of Population, Ministry of Immigration and Population: The 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census, The Union Report, Census Report Volume 2 (Tables 4, 7, 8, 10, 11, 16 and 17), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 b9340ade6cad…)
Department of Population, Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population: The 2019 Inter-censal Survey, Appendix Tables (A-2, A-4, A-9, A-10, B-2, B-7, C-1, F-2, H-1, H-3, H-10 and I-12 by State/Region), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 f09f9e2de673…)

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