Bahia Reports Sharp Rise in Early-Grade Literacy as Selo CNCA Window Opens

Overview

• Coverage on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026, reported that MEC’s Indicador Criança Alfabetizada for Bahia climbed from 36% in 2024 to 55% in 2025, a change state officials attribute to the new Programa Bahia Alfabetizada (Law No. 25.668/2025).
• The Bahia Secretariat of Education says it distributed more than 350,000 reinforcement books in an investment of about R$6 million and signed 409 convênios with 209 municipalities between 2023 and 2026 to support literacy work.
• The 2025 Selo Nacional Compromisso com a Alfabetização certified 331 Bahia municipalities (45 Gold, 178 Silver, 108 Bronze), and the federal registration window for the next Selo edition opened in September 2026 through the Simec system.
• Federal assessments show uneven progress across states: Acre’s IDEB rose from 6.1 in 2023 to 6.5 in 2025 while the municipality of Santa Rosa do Purus remained the only Acre town to miss the early-years literacy target.
• IBGE data put national adult illiteracy at a record-low 4.9% with 58% of people who cannot read or write aged 60 or over, and local adult-education projects such as free classes in Natal report clear social and practical gains that may point to the need to expand services for older learners.