The report, released by the UN Inter-Agency Information
and Analysis Unit, found that illiteracy among women in Iraq (24 percent) is
more than double that of men (11 percent) while inhabitants of rural areas are
much more likely to be illiterate (25 percent) than those in urban areas (14
percent).
The areas worst affected by illiteracy are the Kurdish
provinces of Dahuk, Irbil and Sulaimaniya in Iraq's north, and the
predominantly Shiite provinces of Wassit, Qadissiya and Muthanna in the south.
"In general, Iraq is one of the better countries in
the region in terms of literacy," Nour Dajani, an education program
specialist in Iraq for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO), told The Media Line. "In the 1980's Iraq was
recognized by UNESCO as achieving zero illiteracy. It was one of the few
countries in the world to do so."
Dajani said that the UN financial sanctions imposed on
Iraq in 1990 have had a disastrous effect on Iraq's educational system.
"Under the embargo they were not allowed to buy anything, including books
and pencils," she said.
The US invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the prolonged state
of war that ensued compounded the country's education crisis.
"Security affected literacy," Dajani added.
"Parents were scared to send their girls to schools and many schools were
destroyed during the war. The Iraqi government now says that 4,000 new schools
are needed."
Dajani cited significant school dropout levels and
pupils' internal displacement as a result of the war as the principal reasons
for illiteracy in Iraq. According to Iraq's National Bureau of Statistics, 55
percent of Iraqis aged 6 to 24 do not attend schools.
"Many drop out after fifth grade, when classes
become more difficult," Dajani said. "They also drop out for economic
reasons."
The UN report found that illiteracy impacts civilian
attitudes regarding participation in social and political life. Illiterate
youth in Iraq felt their voices were less heard in the country's institutions.
UNESCO hopes to reduce illiteracy in Iraq by 50 percent
before the year 2015. Several programs run by UNESCO in Iraq aim to reintegrate
school dropouts in formal educational systems, as well as create parallel
informal educational frameworks where literacy classes take place alongside
vocational training.
A large-scale media campaign initiated by Iraq's Ministry
of Education is also planned to counter school dropout and inform Iraqis of the
need for education.
Ali Al-Saffar, an expert on Iraq at the Economist
Intelligence Unit said that the Iraqi illiteracy map clearly reflected
political decisions made during the Saddam era. "The areas more loyal to
Saddam such as Diyala, Salah Al-Din and Anbar have much better literacy
rates," he told The Media Line. "The investment in education was
simply higher in areas loyal to him."
Al-Saffar added that the high illiteracy rate reflected
ongoing underinvestment in education in Iraq. "This is a legacy that has
lasted for years."
The United Nations defines literacy as the ability to
read and write a simple statement related to daily life, as well as basic
numeric skills.
