World Bank calls for phonics to address literacy gap in low and middle income countries

On 30 October 2025 the World Bank issued a report on: Effective Reading Instruction in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: What the Evidence Shows . The report was prepared by the World Bank’s Global Education Evidence Advisory Panel (GEEAP) . The report surveyed evidence from 120 countries and concluded that to address the literacy gap (70% of children cannot read and understand age-appropriate texts), the foundational skills of phonics and language comprehension must be taught by trained teachers.