Austria sounds alarm on increasing illiteracy
(MENAFN) Austria is facing a troubling rise in illiteracy, with nearly 30% of its population demonstrating low reading proficiency, according to new data released by Statistics Austria.
The report reveals that approximately 2.6 million people in the country, which has a population of around nine million, now have limited reading skills. This marks an 11.9% increase in the number of low-literacy individuals between 2012 and 2023.
The decline is most evident among workers in jobs requiring low to medium qualifications. The average reading competency for Austrians aged 16 to 65 is currently 254 points—below the OECD average of 260. While young adults (ages 16–24) scored above the OECD benchmark, older age groups significantly underperformed.
Tobias Thomas, Director General of Statistics Austria, highlighted the widening literacy gap, stating that disparities in adult reading abilities have grown over time. He also pointed to a sharp drop in the consumption of more complex reading materials like newspapers and magazines. Austrians now tend to focus more on brief texts such as emails.
In addition to literacy concerns, the report notes that everyday math skills have also declined. The share of Austrians with low numeracy levels rose by 6.7% over the same period, with 22.6% of the population now struggling with basic math tasks.
In contrast, a 2024 survey by Russian state pollster VTSIOM showed that reading remains widespread in Russia, with 87% of respondents saying they had read something in the previous week. Fiction was the most popular choice, followed by news and social media content.
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