On International Literacy Day, former Labour Party presidential candidate Mr. Peter Obi reemphasized the importance of education for Nigeria’s development. In a recent statement posted on his X account, Obi lamented the country’s lack of commitment to educational growth.
The presidential hopeful pointed out that Nigeria’s 62% literacy rate is well below the global average of 87%, highlighting the alarming figure of over 18 million out-of-school children. He warned that this growing population of uneducated youth seriously threatens national security.
“The obvious lack of commitment to educational growth in the country has continued to unleash many dire consequences on the nation. As I have always said, the society we abuse today will take revenge on us tomorrow.”
Citing the government’s low budget for Universal Basic Education, Obi argued, “For a country with about 81,520 schools at the primary level and 23,550 schools at the secondary level, the N251.47 billion budgeted for Universal Basic Education remains low.
“Let me, once again, cite a scenario I had earlier painted. Imagine using N160 million to buy vehicles for the legislators, the total of which came to about N60 billion. Local car manufacturers, such as Innoson Vehicle Manufacturing (IVM), would have sold the identical vehicles at a 50% discount, saving us 50% of that cost, which would be about N30 billion. Above all, transacting with INNOSON would not have involved foreign currency.
“At the N10 million cost of building five classroom blocks in a primary school for basic education, the saved amount would have given us 3000 structures, which will go a long way in reducing the number of our children without classrooms and currently learning under the trees. This would have helped us drastically reduce the number of out-of-school children roaming the streets today.”
Mr. Obi concluded by urging political leaders to reduce the cost of governance and divert funds to priority areas of development such as education.
International Literacy Day is September 8th, which UNESCO sets aside every year to celebrate and promote the importance of literacy as a tool for empowering individuals and building more inclusive societies.
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