Adults with literacy and numeracy difficulties: gap between problem and government policy

Results of government policy on functional illiteracy uncertain

The government´s policy to reduce functional illiteracy among adults is not in proportion to the size of the problem. The Minister of Education says the policy is aimed at 1.3 million people, but the Court of Audit has calculated that 2.5 million people in the Netherlands are functionally illiterate. Government policy is targeted at basic literacy and is modest in its ambitions. It is uncertain what contribution the policy makes to reducing the number of functionally illiterate. The Court of Audit concluded from its audit of government policy for people with literacy and numeracy difficulties that there was a gap between the size of the problem and the measures taken to tackle it.