Europe on top in EF's Global Ranking of English Proficiency

ZURICH, Nov. 17, 2020 /CNW/ -- EF Education First released today the 2020 edition of its
EF English Proficiency Index (EF EPI), analyzing data from 2.2 million non-native English speakers in 100 countries and regions. This year, the Netherlands remains in first position while Denmark and Finland come in second and third.

The EF English Proficiency Index is an annual ranking of countries and regions by English skills.

"While 2020 has been a challenging year, the circumstances have also highlighted the importance of clear communication and cooperation across borders. English as a global lingua franca continues to bring people together, and the EF EPI contains valuable insights for policy makers to evaluate and strengthen their organizations' and governments' language learning capability," said Dr. Christopher McCormick, EF Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs.

The EF EPI is based on test scores from the EF Standard English Test (EF SET), the world's first free standardized English test. The EF SET has been used worldwide by thousands of schools, companies, and governments for large-scale testing.

Key findings of the EF EPI 2020 include:

• The network effect of English has never been stronger. The more people use English, the more useful it becomes for individuals, businesses, and countries to access resources and opportunities.
• Although Europe's English proficiency is consistently strong, 27 out of 33 countries improved their proficiency since last year. Russia has improved and returned to the Moderate proficiency band, after briefly dropping to the Low proficiency band last year.
• Asia displays the largest gap between highest and lowest scorers of any region. China continues to improve but India has dropped from Moderate to Low proficiency.
• Latin America's upward trend continues despite Mexico's significant decline.
• Africa's overall average has improved significantly, but the gap between high and low proficiency countries remains wide. Most countries on the continent still do not supply enough test data to be included in the index.
• People aged 26 to 30 have the highest English proficiency worldwide, but adults over 40 score better than 18-20 year olds, underlining the role of universities and workplaces in developing English skills.
• Government, education, and healthcare sectors scored at the bottom of the industry ranking. Competition in the private sector is driving companies to select for English proficiency and invest in developing English skills more aggressively, leaving the public sector underskilled by comparison.
• For the first time, Armenia, Tajikistan, and Rwanda have sufficient data to be included in the index.

The scoring scale of the EF EPI has moved to 800 points this year to eliminate confusion with the previous scale which resembled a percentile. Alongside the new scale, a clarification of the conversion of EF EPI scores to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) is included in the report.

The EF EPI report is available for download at http://www.ef.com/epi. The EF EPI 2020 ranking is below.

About EF Education First 

EF Education First is an international education company that focuses on language, travel, cultural exchange, and academics. Founded in 1965, EF's mission is "opening the world through education." EF is the Official Language Training Partner for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

EF English Proficiency Index 2020 Ranking of Countries and Regions:

EF EPI Ranking	Country or Region
1	Netherlands
2	Denmark
3	Finland
4	Sweden
5	Norway
6	Austria
7	Portugal
8	Germany
9	Belgium
10	Singapore
11	Luxembourg
12	South Africa
13	Croatia
14	Hungary
15	Serbia
16	Poland
17	Romania
18	Switzerland
19	Czech Republic
20	Bulgaria
21	Greece
22	Kenya
22	Slovakia
24	Lithuania
25	Argentina
25	Estonia
27	Philippines
28	France
29	Latvia
30	Italy
30	Malaysia
32	South Korea
33	Hong Kong, China
34	Nigeria
34	Spain
36	Costa Rica
37	Chile
38	China
39	Paraguay
40	Belarus
41	Cuba
41	Russia
43	Albania
44	Ukraine
45	Macau, China
46	Bolivia
47	Georgia
48	Dominican Republic
49	Honduras
50	India
51	Armenia
51	Uruguay
53	Brazil
54	Tunisia
55	Japan
56	El Salvador
56	Iran
56	Panama
59	Peru
60	Nepal
61	Pakistan
62	Ethiopia
63	Bangladesh
63	Guatemala
65	Vietnam
66	United Arab Emirates
67	Venezuela
68	Sri Lanka
69	Turkey
70	Kuwait
71	Qatar
72	Jordan
73	Nicaragua
74	Bahrain
74	Indonesia
74	Morocco
77	Colombia
78	Mongolia
79	Afghanistan
80	Angola
81	Algeria
82	Mexico
83	Egypt
84	Cambodia
85	Sudan
86	Azerbaijan
87	Syria
88	Uzbekistan
89	Cameroon
89	Thailand
91	Ivory Coast
92	Kazakhstan
93	Ecuador
93	Myanmar
95	Rwanda
96	Kyrgyzstan
97	Saudi Arabia
98	Oman
99	Iraq
100	Tajikistan

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SOURCE EF Education First (EF)

Adam Bickelman, Telephone number: [phone]