Jea Nicole Jacot

Following a previous illiteracy report released on April 2025, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) clarified that 5.58 million Filipino high school graduates from 2019 to 2024 are considered “basically literate but not functionally literate.”


It means that they can read, write, and compute, but lack comprehension skills.

In a press release on May 19, the PSA addressed the recent misreports across print, broadcast, and social media outlets that incorrectly claimed an estimated 19 million Filipino high school graduates and junior high school completers were ‘functionally illiterate.’

“The 19 million refers to the estimated number of 10-to-64-year-olds who are ‘basically literate but not functionally literate’ because of a lack of comprehension skill, regardless of the highest grade completed,” the statement read, citing the data based on the 2024 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Study (FLEMMS) report.

It added that it did not particularly refer to those who graduated from high school under the old and K to 12 curriculum, and junior high school completers under the K to 12 curriculum.

Moreover, it stated that in 2024, an estimated 6.45 million high school graduates, including junior high school completers aged 10 to 64, were considered "not functionally literate."

Meanwhile, the “not functionally literate” population between 10 and 64 years old, regardless of educational attainment, stood at 24.83 million

In the latest reiteration, the PSA said that it updated the definition of functionally literate in the 2024 FLEMMS report, incorporating higher-level comprehension skills for a person to be considered functionally literate.

‘Still alarming’

In a House committee briefing on May 19, PSA Assistant National Statistician Adrian Cerezo said that of the 19 million estimate, over 13 million people were at least not able to finish junior or senior high school.  

House Committee on Basic Education and Culture Chairman Roman Romulo said that the 5.58 million individuals who lack comprehension, even with a high school diploma, still show an alarming number.

“5.5 million pa rin ang nakapagtapos ng senior high school or high school na hindi maka-comprehend ng binabasa. 5.5 million pa rin ‘yun, malaki pa rin. Gusto niyo lang sabihin sa’min na ‘yung 13 million, hindi kasi nakapag-tapos pero pwedeng nag-aral ‘yun,” Romulo expressed.

The Department of Education (DepEd) had also clarified that the 19 million Filipinos deemed "not functionally literate" by the 2024 FLEMMS results represent a much wider age range, not solely high school graduates.