Middle East Illiteracy Rates
| Rank | Country | Illiteracy rate (%) |
| 1 | Afghanistan | 72 |
| 2 | Pakistan | 50 |
| 3 | Mauritania | 49 |
| 4 | Morocco | 48 |
| 5 | Yemen | 46 |
| 6 | Sudan | 39 |
| 7 | Djibouti | 32 |
| 8 | Algeria | 30 |
| 9 | Iraq | 26 |
| 10 | Tunisia | 25.7 |
| 11 | Egypt | 28 |
| 12 | Comoros | 25 |
| 13 | Syria | 19 |
| 14 | Oman | 18 |
| 15 | Iran | 17.6 |
| 16 | Saudi Arabia | 17.1 |
| 17 | Libya | 16 |
| 18 | Bahrain | 13 |
| 19 | Turkey | 12.6 |
| 20 | Lebanon | 12 |
| 21 | U.A.E. | 11.3 |
| 22 | Qatar | 11 |
| 23 | Jordan | 9 |
| 24 | Palestine | 8 |
| 25 | Kuwait | 7 |
| 26 | Cyprus | 3.2 |
| 27 | Israel | 3 |
| 28 | Azerbaijan | 1.2 |
| 29 | Armenia | 1 |
| Sources: United Nations, 2009 World Almanac, The Economist | ||