September 8 is World Literacy Day. Literacy is an critical factor in the development of a nation. The role that education plays in this respect is recognized in the United Nations-sponsored eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Universal primary education is goal number 2 of the MDGs.

Literacy is a human right, a tool of personal empowerment and a means for social and human development, so says the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Educational opportunities depend on literacy. Literacy is at the heart of basic education for all, and essential for eradicating poverty, reducing child mortality, curbing population growth, achieving gender equality and ensuring sustainable development, peace and democracy.

A good quality basic education equips pupils with literacy skills for life and further learning; literate parents are more likely to send their children to school; literate people are better able to access continuing educational opportunities; and literate societies are better geared to meet pressing development.

Canada is now the global leader in higher education among young adults.

According to the US Commission on Access, Admissions and Success in Higher Education College Completion Agenda 2010 Progress Report, Canada leads the developed countries in higher education in the key demographic group of citizens who are ages 25 to 34. It is followed by the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, Japan, New Zealand, Ireland, Norway, Israel, France, Belgium and Australia. The report ranks the United States 12th in this age group, noting that this is ‘an alarming decline’.

The United States however, still performs better in other age groups. It is ranked sixth in post-secondary attainment in the world among 25- to 64-year-olds. It ranks fourth in post-secondary attainment for citizens ages 55 to 64 and where it trails the Russian Federation, Israel and Canada in this age group.

The District of Columbia ranks higher than any state in college completion among young adults, with 62.2 percent of 25- to 34-year-olds holding postsecondary degrees. Maryland ranks 12th among states, with a 38.6 percent completion rate; Virginia ranks 17th, with a 36.5 percent rate, according to the study.

Another study shows that African American young males in the United States lag far behind in high school graduation rates. Yes We Can, The Schott 50 State Report on Public Education and Black Males 2010 reveals that only 47% of Black males graduate from high school.

Zimbabwe leads Africa as the country with the highest literacy rate on the continent, having overtaken Tunisia. According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) latest statistical digest, the southern African country has a 92 per cent literacy rate, up from 85 per cent. Tunisia remains at 87 per cent. Zimbabwe's education was heavily subsidized by government in the early post-independence years, resulting in vast improvements from the colonial-era system.

September 8 was proclaimed International Literacy Day by UNESCO in1965 and was first celebrated in 1966. The day highlights the importance of literacy to individuals, communities and societies.

Despite many and varied efforts, literacy remains an elusive target: some 796 million adults lack minimum literacy skills which means that about one in six adults is still not literate; 67.4 million children are out-of-school and many more attend irregularly or drop out.