Congo - Kinshasa vs Zambia
Congo - Kinshasa vs Zambia: Adult literacy
Adult literacy: 68.5% in Congo - Kinshasa in 2023 and 71.8% in Zambia in 2024, by UNESCO estimates. In 2020 the value was higher in Zambia, by 16.1 percentage points, or 1.24 times that in Congo - Kinshasa.
% of adults · UNESCO
What the numbers say
- Zambia has been higher since 2020, when it overtook Congo - Kinshasa.
- The world as a whole: 87% in 2020.
Every year
% of adults · UNESCO
| Year | Congo - Kinshasa | Zambia | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | – | 71.8 | 87.7 |
| 2023 | 68.5 | – | 87.6 |
| 2022 | – | 80 | 87.4 |
| 2021 | – | 80 | 87.2 |
| 2020 | 65.7 | 81.8 | 87 |
| 2019 | – | – | 86.8 |
| 2018 | 73.6 | 71.1 | 86.8 |
| 2017 | – | – | 86.5 |
| 2016 | 77 | – | 86.3 |
| 2015 | – | – | 86 |
| 2014 | – | – | 85.6 |
| 2013 | – | – | 85.2 |
| 2012 | 75 | – | 84.9 |
| 2011 | – | – | 84.7 |
| 2010 | – | 83.1 | 84.4 |
| 2009 | – | – | 83.8 |
| 2008 | – | – | 83.5 |
| 2007 | – | – | 83.1 |
| 2006 | – | – | 82.5 |
| 2005 | – | – | 82.6 |
| 2004 | – | – | 82.6 |
| 2003 | – | – | 82.2 |
| 2002 | – | 69.2 | 81.7 |
| 2001 | 67.2 | – | 81.4 |
| 2000 | – | – | 81.1 |
| 1999 | – | 68 | 80.9 |
| 1998 | – | – | 80.5 |
| 1997 | – | – | 79.3 |
| 1996 | – | – | 77.3 |
| 1995 | – | – | 76.9 |
| 1994 | – | – | 76.4 |
| 1993 | – | – | 76 |
| 1992 | – | – | 75.5 |
| 1991 | – | – | 75.1 |
| 1990 | – | 65 | 74.6 |
| 1989 | – | – | 74.1 |
| 1988 | – | – | 73.6 |
| 1987 | – | – | 71.9 |
| 1986 | – | – | 71.3 |
| 1985 | – | – | 70.7 |
| 1984 | – | – | 70.2 |
| 1983 | – | – | 69.5 |
| 1982 | – | – | 68.9 |
| 1981 | – | – | 68.4 |
| 1980 | – | – | 67.8 |
| 1979 | – | – | 67.2 |
| 1978 | – | – | 66.5 |
| 1977 | – | – | 65.9 |
| 1976 | – | – | 65.6 |
| 1975 | – | – | 65.4 |
Each country on its own
Good to know
- The share of people aged 15 and over who can read and write a short, simple statement about their everyday life.
- Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics, via the World Bank.
- The faint line is the world as a whole, as the same source counts it.
How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time
Congo - Kinshasa vs Zambia
Health
- Life expectancyCongo - Kinshasa: 61.9 years in 2023Zambia: 66.4 years in 2023
- Child mortalityCongo - Kinshasa: 9 per 100 live births in 2024Zambia: 4.8 per 100 live births in 2024
- Infant mortalityCongo - Kinshasa: 49.3 per 1,000 live births in 2023Zambia: 38.2 per 1,000 live births in 2023
- DepressionCongo - Kinshasa: 3.96% in 2017Zambia: 3.64% in 2017
- Suicide rateCongo - Kinshasa: 11.6 per 100,000 people in 2017Zambia: 13.1 per 100,000 people in 2017
People
- PopulationCongo - Kinshasa: 106 million people in 2023Zambia: 20.7 million people in 2023
- Population growthCongo - Kinshasa: 3.26% a year in 2023Zambia: 2.83% a year in 2023
- Fertility rateCongo - Kinshasa: 6.05 births per woman in 2023Zambia: 4.1 births per woman in 2023
- Urban populationCongo - Kinshasa: 45.1% in 2025Zambia: 45.9% in 2025
- Median ageCongo - Kinshasa: 15.8 years in 2023Zambia: 17.5 years in 2023
- People aged 65 and overCongo - Kinshasa: 3.1% in 2023Zambia: 1.9% in 2023
- Net migration rateCongo - Kinshasa: -0.1 per 1,000 people in 2023Zambia: 0.5 per 1,000 people in 2023
Economy
Education
Politics
Conflict
Military
- Military spendingCongo - Kinshasa: 1.38% of GDP in 2025Zambia: 1.26% of GDP in 2025
- Military spending in US dollarsCongo - Kinshasa: $1.08B in 2025Zambia: $343M in 2025
- Military spending per personCongo - Kinshasa: $11 in 2025Zambia: $19 in 2025
- Military share of state spendingCongo - Kinshasa: 8.1% of government spending in 2025Zambia: 4.5% of government spending in 2025
- Armed forces personnelCongo - Kinshasa: 134,000 people in 2020Zambia: 16,000 people in 2020
- National powerCongo - Kinshasa: 0.59% of world capability in 2022Zambia: 0.1% of world capability in 2022
- Armed forces, share of workersCongo - Kinshasa: 0.41% of the labour force in 2020Zambia: 0.24% of the labour force in 2020
- Arms importsCongo - Kinshasa: 44 million TIV in 2025Zambia: 1 million TIV in 2024
- Arms exportsCongo - Kinshasa: 22 million TIV in 1997Zambia: 2 million TIV in 1990