Nairobi — Kenya has been ranked third in Africa for English proficiency, trailing South Africa and Zimbabwe, according to a new global index.
The latest EF English Proficiency Index, which assessed English skills across 123 countries and regions, shows South Africa and Zimbabwe tied with a very high proficiency score of 602, while Kenya followed closely with a score of 593.
The index analysed data from 2.2 million EF SET test takers worldwide in 2024 and, for the first time, incorporated speaking and writing assessments, offering a broader view of English proficiency compared to previous editions.
Within Africa, Kenya was followed by Zambia, Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda and Ethiopia, among others.
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At the lower end of the rankings, Ivory Coast, Libya, Togo, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Benin and Mali recorded very low levels of English proficiency, with scores of 393, 395, 397, 398, 400, 406 and 408 respectively.
“Speaking is the weakest English skill in a majority of countries and has the lowest worldwide average score, with only three countries scoring in the high proficiency band for speaking — Kenya, South Africa and Zimbabwe — all of which have English as one of their official languages,” the report notes.
It adds that no country ranked in the very high proficiency band for speaking, pointing out that speaking skills are historically the most difficult for education systems to develop and assess, and are often excluded from national examinations.
Globally, the Netherlands, Croatia, Austria and Germany ranked highest in Europe for English proficiency, while Azerbaijan, Turkey and Italy lagged behind.
According to the report, English proficiency tends to be highest in sectors such as information technology, professional services, media, sports and entertainment, where daily operations require frequent use of the language.