United Nations' (UN) International Literacy Day obseved anually on 8 September

The United Nations' (UN) International Literacy Day is obseved anually on 8 September. The International Literacy Day is observed to raise people's awareness of and concern for literacy issues in the world. The day highlights the importance of literacy in areas such as health and education. Literacy and Empowerment is the theme for the year 2009-2011 of the United Nations Literacy Decade.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and its partners promote the day to underline the significance of literacy for healthy societies, with a strong emphasis on epidemics and communicable diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis and malaria.

Activities for the day include literacy day projects undertaken particularly with regard to technology and literature, which are promoted by various organizations including reading associations.

According to UNESCO, about 774 million adults lack the minimum literacy skills. One in five adults is still not literate and two-thirds of them are women. About 75 million children are out-of-school and many more attend irregularly or drop out.

The UN General Assembly proclaimed a 10-year period beginning on 1 January 2003, as the United Nations Literacy Decade. The assembly welcomed the International Plan of Action for the Decade and decided for UNESCO to take a coordinating role in activities at an international level within the decade's framework. UNESCO on the ocassion of International Literacy Day reminds the international community of the status of literacy and adult learning globally.

This day was first celebrated on September 8, 1966. The day was proclaimed for disseminating literacy awareness since 1965 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

The United Nations General Assembly had proclaimed the year 1990 as International Literacy Year. The special year marked the ongoing commitment of the world community to boost and support literacy as a key to personal progress for the socioeconomic development of nations like India.

Almost 35 countries have a literacy rate of less than 50 percent and a population of more than 10 million people who are illiterate. An 85 percent of the world's illiterate population dwells in these countries, and two-thirds are women. According to Indian Census 2011, the literacy rate is 74.04 percent of the total population aged seven and above.

The U.N. calls for combined parallel efforts, sufficient resources and endeavor, strategies, and continued analysis of the developmental work, a revised political will, and for accepting to do things differently at all levels ― locally, nationally and trans-nationally.

Various governments around the world since 2000 announced four initiatives in collaboration with several agencies of the United Nations ― Education for All, the Millennium Development Goals, the Literacy Decade and the Decade of Education for Constant Development.