For statistical purposes the data for China do not include Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions and Taiwan province of China. Excluding unemployed population. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization defines an illiterate person as someone who can not, with understanding, both read and write a short, simple statement on his or her everyday life. A person who can only read but not write, or can write but not read is considered to be illiterate. This definition of literacy is widely used in national population censuses and surveys but its interpretation and application may vary to some extent among countries, depending on national, social and cultural circumstances.
Literacy is a good measure of educational achievement in developing regions.