International Literacy Day

  September 8th, 2025 - International Literacy Day : promoting literacy in the digital era.

  Examples of innovative uses of technology during literacy instruction include student-produced products, such as digital story expressions. Learn more about  Literacy in the digital age.

  Digital technologies permeate many spheres of life, changing the way in which we learn, live, work, interact and socialize, while impacting the well-being of our planet. Today, nearly seven out of ten people in the world (68%) use the Internet, and four out of five people aged 10 or older own a mobilephone . Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered applications have been swiftly adopted in many areas such as health care, transportation, and disaster management. In these rapidly changing digital landscapes , the importance of literacy cannot be emphasized enough. Literacy , on one hand, is a basis for digital skills and inclusive digital transition. It is essential for accessing and managing the exponential growth of information and knowledge and fundamental in becoming critical thinkers, responsible citizens, lifelong learners and agents of transformation. On the other hand, literacy is part of the phenomenonof digitalization which has redefined what it means to be literate in ...

  But are we equipped with the necessary literacy skills to benefit from digitalization ? Compared to half a century ago when nearly one out of four young people (aged 15-24) could neither read nor write, 93% of young people were literate in 2024 due largely to the expansion of formal basic education. However, one out of ten youth and adults (739 million) still lacked basic literacy skills , with disparities across regions, countries and populations, and especially affecting women and learners with various forms of vulnerabilities (e.g. poverty, disabilities). About 80% of them live in 31 countries targeted by the UNESCO-led Global Alliance for Literacy (GAL) . But these data based on self- or proxy-declaration are an underestimation. When skills are directly measured, 18% of adults in 31 developed countries lack the most basic levels of proficiency in literacy, numeracy and adaptive problem-solving . In these countries, adult literacy has actually stagnated or declined since 2012...

 For collective stocktaking and critical reflection on literacy in the digital era against this background, five areas are proposed to frame discussions towards and during International Literacy Day (ILD) 2025.   1) Centrality of literacy in the digital era 2) Leveraging digital technologies to promote literacy  3) Taking learners’ contexts into account to leave no one behind  4) Harnessing the power of literacy for sustainable, just and peaceful societies 5) Co-creating inclusive, literate, digital societies by enhanced lifelong learning ecosystems

In today’s connected world, literacy is no longer limited to reading and writing on paper alone. It entails identifying, understanding, interpreting, evaluating, creating, verifying, communicating, and computing, using digital as well as written and print materials. It is therefore a basis for and integral to broader knowledge and skills required to address wide-ranging issues such as health, climate change, citizenship and employment. As a continuum of proficiency that changes across lifespans, literacy plays a central role in thinking critically, developing ideas, contextualizing accessed information, and navigating complex environments . In the digital era , literacy is essential for safe and responsible engagement with digital tools and content, for leveraging post-digital age technologies such as generative AI and facilitating balanced human-machine relationships and co-existence through continuous learning, relearning, and unlearning as skills evolve and technologies develo...

Digital transformation must leave no one behind. Innovative and effective literacy practices in a digitalera require relevance and recognition of diversity across literacy-related systems , policies, programmes, and teaching and learning practices. Digital technologies help promote impactful literacy initiatives when they are used with caution , are locally grounded and context-specific, foster participatory approaches, embrace learners’ voices and agency, consider learners’ profiles, needs, aspirations, cultures, and knowledge systems, and cocreate new knowledge and solutions. Digital technologies , for instance, have facilitated the use of local languages , helped develop content relevant to learners’ knowledge, cultures and contexts, and contributed to making learning more personalized.

  Literacy is central to building inclusive, just, sustainable digitalized societies and reimagining education. When acquired through critical pedagogy and ‘ engaged pedagogy ’ prioritizing co-creation of knowledge through non-hierarchical dialogue and critical reflection, literacy enables people to read not only a ‘word’ but the ‘world’ in which they live to become agents for transformations. Digital platforms are expanding access to such dialogic learning , creating new possibilities for interconnectedness, collaborative meaning-making, and inclusive engagement in lifelong learning processes. Digital technologies are also facilitating mother language-based and/or multilingual approaches to literacy development , which in turn contributes to safeguard linguistic, cultural and epistemic diversity. Also important is more reflective and responsible engagement with digital tools, which considers their environmental impact, such as water and energy consumption.

  Enhanced lifelong learning ecosystems facilitate the promotion of literacy throughout life t hrough formal, non-formal and informal pathways, anchored in multilingual literate environments where people can acquire, use and advance literacy skills in their first languages and beyond. Such ecosystems entail inclusive, fair and democratic governance, systems, institutions, structures, and processes, as well as adequate involvement and representation of stakeholders such as civil society organizations, educators, learners, communities, researchers and the private sector, in decision-making. Given the increasing diversification of actors, greater attention is needed to the issues of equitable, pro-poor public resource allocation and public oversight to safeguard human rights principles, privacy, democratic value and governance and epistemic diversity. Several global multistakeholder partnerships are already in operation, including the UNESCO/UNICEF-led Gateways to Digital PublicLea...

On September 8th , The International Literacy Day 202 5 will be celebrated across the world at global, regional, country, community levels in person and online. At the global level, a global conference will be organized by UNESCO at its Headquarters in Paris, France, on 8 September 2025. Several national governments are planning national celebrations, while many events are being organized by other partners.  The ILD2025 will be an opportunity for critical reflection on what literacy is and how literacy teaching and learning, programmes and policies are designed, managed and monitored in this digital era . In addition, ILD2025 wi ll spotlight effective policies and interventions to promote literacy as a common good and a right, and as a lever for empowerment and transformation to build more inclusive, just and sustainable societies . It will also provide a space for collective discussion on the futures of literacy.  For further information please visit the webpages of Intern...

  The ILD2025 celebrations aim at Celebrating literacy achievements and raising awareness of the need to address remaining and emerging challenges in the rapidly evolving digital landscapes

  The ILD2025 celebrations aim at Reflecting on the transformative power of literacy as a key factor for improving education and lifelong learning in the digital era.

 The ILD2025 celebrations aim at Exploring both potential and risks of digitalization for literacy teaching and learning, programmes, policies and lifelong learning ecosystems.

  The ILD2025 celebrations aim at Identifying effective straegies and programmes for developing literacy and digital skills.

  The ILD2025 celebrations aim at Identifying digital programmes and initiatives that effectively support the development of literacy skills of diverse learners and target groups.

  The ILD2025 celebrations aim at Fostering multistakeholder dialogue and partnerships in support of enhanced literacy efforts.