Pakistan has been ranked in the 48TH spot, with a low overall proficiency level, in EF’s English Proficiency Index (EPI); the world’s largest ranking of countries according to their level of English.
Among reasons cited are the low percentage of people with access to the Internet and the level of spending on education.
With a very high proficiency rating, Netherland tops the list, just ahead of Denmark and Sweden, who rank in second and third place respectively. Iraq ranks last on the list with a very low English proficiency level.
Education First (EF) has ranked 72 countries according to their English proficiency based on an online test.
Every year Education First (EF) conducts a study to see which non-native countries rank the highest in English. This year marked the sixth edition, testing almost a million adults across 72 countries. The study has two parts:
The first takes into consideration the relationship between English and its relationship to various socio-economic factors.
It found that English remains a key factor in securing higher incomes, as well as allowing professionals to connect more to different environments and thus, equating to a better quality of life. It also found that women, on average, have stronger English skills than men.
The second looks at the proficiency across four continents: Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
Unfortunately, the study’s methodology is somewhat limited in that it uses multiple choice questions to test reading and listening skills rather than looking at spoken fluency or written ability, often considered more important.
Here is a complete list of countries mapped according to their English language proficiency.
01 Netherlands
02 Denmark
03 Sweden
04 Norway
05 Finland
06 Singapore
07 Luxembourg
08 Austria
09 Germany
10 Poland
11 Belgium
12 Malaysia
13 Philippines
14 Switzerland
15 Portugal
16 Czech Republic
17 Serbia
18 Hungary
19 Argentina
20 Romania
21 Slovakia
22 India
23 Dominican Republic
24 Bulgaria
25 Spain
26 Bosnia and Herzegovina
27 South Korea
28 Italy
29 France
30 Hong Kong
31 Vietnam
32 Indonesia
33 Taiwan
34 Russia
35 Japan
36 Uruguay
37 Macau
38 Costa Rica
39 China
40 Brazil
41 Ukraine
42 Chile
43 Mexico
44 Morocco
45 Peru
46 U.A.E.
47 Ecuador
48 Pakistan
49 Colombia
50 Panama
51 Turkey
52 Tunisia
53 Guatemala
54 Kazakhstan
55 Egypt
56 Thailand
57 Azerbaijan
58 Sri Lanka
59 Qatar
60 Venezuela
61 Iran
62 Jordan
63 El Salvador
64 Oman
65 Kuwait
66 Mongolia
67 Algeria
68 Saudi Arabia
69 Cambodia
70 Laos
71 Libya
72 Iraq