The School Leaving Certificate examination was given after completion of the higher-secondary level. In the 1981 census 24 percent of the population was found to be literate and as of 1990, the literacy rate was estimated to be 33 percent . There still remains a wide gap between male and female literacy rates. A gulf also existed in literacy rates between rural and urban areas. The higher literacy rates in urban areas were largely attributed to the availability of more and better educational opportunities, a greater awareness of the need for education for employment and socioeconomic mobility.
Education still remains largely urban-biased.
The majority of education institutions were found in urban areas. In rural areas the quality of instruction continues to be inferior with facilities being very poor and educational materials are very difficult to find or virtually unavailable. Schools and colleges are now open to all and the enrollment figures do continue to rise and the long- standing prejudice against the education of women, although still in existence, seems to be very slowly breaking down. Social class and geography remain to be the most distinctive features of the lack of education within this country. The quality of primary school facilities is a concern to the Government of Nepal.