The 2024 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey (FLEMMS) introduced updated definitions and methodologies for measuring literacy, following PSA Board Resolution No. 13, Series of 2024. These revisions aim to provide a more accurate picture of literacy across Philippine regions, including Northern Mindanao.

Basic literacy refers to the ability of an individual to read and write a simple message in any language or dialect with understanding, and to perform basic mathematical operations.

Functional literacy is the ability of a person to read, write, compute and comprehend. In addition to the basic literacy skills, functional literacy includes higher level of comprehension skills, such as integrating two or more pieces of information and making inferences based on the given information.

Basic literacy is measured among individuals aged 5 years and over, while functional literacy is assessed among individuals aged 10 to 64 years.

I. Basic Literacy

In 2024, 90.8 percent of individuals aged 5 years and over in Northern Mindanao were classified as basic literate. This corresponds to approximately 4.3 million individuals out of an estimated 4.7 million in the same age range.

Basic literacy rates varied across provinces and highly urbanized cities (HUCs) with the City of Cagayan de Oro posting the highest basic literacy rate at 96.1 percent, surpassing the regional average by 5.3 percentage points. This was followed by the City of Iligan (93.4%) and Misamis Occidental (91.6%). Conversely, Camiguin (90.7%), Bukidnon (90.5%), and Lanao del Norte (83.3%) recorded rates below the regional average. (Figure 1)

Figure 1. Basic Literacy Rate of Population 5 years old and over by Province/HUCs, Region X: 2024 (in percent)

                           Source: Philippine Statistics Authority, 2024 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey

In terms of sex, females exhibited a higher basic literacy rate at 91.7 percent compared to males at 89.9 percent. By age group, the 20 to 24 years old individuals had the highest basic literacy rate at 97.1 percent. In contrast, the oldest (60 years old and over) and the youngest (10-14 years old) had the lowest basic literacy rates at 77.0 percent and 78.5 percent, respectively. (Figure 2)

Figure 2. Basic Literacy Rate of Population 5 years old and over by Sex and Age Group, Region X: 2024 (in percent)

                           Source: Philippine Statistics Authority, 2024 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey

Among individuals 5 years old and over, around 6.3 percent or roughly 7 in every 100 individuals cannot read and write, or were classified as illiterate. Among provinces and HUCs, Lanao del Norte had the highest proportion of individuals who cannot read and write at 12.5 percent. The same province also recorded the highest proportion of individuals with low level of literacy (can read and write only) at 4.2 percent. (Table 1)

Table 1. Percentage of Population 5 Years Old and Over by Level of Literacy and Province/HUC, Region X: 2024 (in percent)

                           Notes: Illiterate – cannot read and write

                           Low Literate – can read and write only
                           Basic Literate –can read and write with understanding, and can compute

                           Source: Philippine Statistics Authority, 2024 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey

II. Functional Literacy

The 2024 FLEMMS reported that 70.0 percent of individuals aged 10 to 64 years in Northern Mindanao in 2024 were functional literate, equivalent to approximately 2.7 million individuals out of 3.9 million in the same age range.

Among provinces and highly urbanized cities, the City of Cagayan de Oro still led with the highest functional literacy rate at 84.4 percent, 14.4 percentage points above the regional average. This was followed by the City of Iligan at 77.4 percent and Camiguin at 72.9 percent. Meanwhile, Misamis Oriental (65.3%) and Lanao del Norte (56.5%) posted the lowest rates, even lower than the regional average. (Figure 3)

Figure 3. Functional Literacy Rate of Population 10 to 64 Years Old by Province/HUCs, Region X: 2024 (in percent)

                           Source: Philippine Statistics Authority, 2024 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media

By sex, females showed a higher functional literacy at 73.3 percent, compared to males at 66.9 percent. Among age groups, the highest functional literacy was observed in 20 to 24 years old individuals at 77.9 percent, while the oldest (60 to 64 years old) and the youngest (10-14 years old) had the lowest functional literacy rates at 57.4 percent and 60.9 percent, respectively. (Figure 4)

Figure 4. Functional Literacy Rate of Population 10 to 64 Years Old by Sex and Age Group, Region X: 2024 (in percent)

                           Source: Philippine Statistics Authority, 2024 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey

Note that while the functional literacy rate of individuals aged 10 to 64 years was at 70.0 percent, their basic literacy rate was recorded at 93.9 percent, a difference of 23.9 percentage points. This indicates that for every nine individuals aged 10 to 64 years who can read, write, and compute, around two individuals had comprehension difficulty.

The largest gap between basic and functional literacy was noted in age group 10 to 14 years, where approximately 1 out of every 3 basic literate individuals had comprehension challenges. (Figure 5)

Figure 5. Basic and Functional Literacy Rates of Population 10 to 64 Years Old by Age Group, Region X: 2024 (in percent)

                           Source: Philippine Statistics Authority, 2024 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey

This data underscores the importance of not only promoting basic literacy but also enhancing comprehension and analytical reading skills, particularly among the younger population in Northern Mindanao.

(SGD.)SARAH B. BALAGBIS
(Chief Statistical Specialist)
Officer-in-Charge