The minister of education, Prof. Rukuayyatu Ahmed Rufai, has stated that the national commission for mass literacy, adult and non-formal education has concentrated its efforts at providing education to the marginalised group in the country.
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Making this known yesterday during an Education For All (EFA) event at the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE), the minister revealed that the ministry was committed to seeing that ‘the growing number of children, youths and adults who, unfortunately, are excluded from basic education, whether for social, economic or geographic reasons, are no longer marginalised.”
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She revealed that the educationally-marginalised groups, include among other groups the girl-child and boy dropouts, the almajiris, the nomads and migrant fishermen and cattle herders, the vulnerable groups, the physically-challenged and other special needs group as well as illiterate youths and adults.
She said all hands must be on deck to achieve the federal government’s target of 2015 for mass literacy, an effort aimed at enabling people across all ages to acquire the skill of reading, writing and making of simple calculations to enable them function effectively in their day to day activities.
The minister of state, Barr. Nyesom Wike in his speech noted that some significant progress had been made on education and literacy since the adoption of the EAF goals and the implementation of the Universal Basic Education programme.
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He said the ‘federal ministry of education acknowledges that Nigeria may not be able to achieve the MDGs on UBE and the EFA targets for 2015 unless government at all levels step up their efforts to reach the marginalised with access to qualitative education by eliminating disparities and building an inclusive and equitable education system.
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Dr. Rosemary Nwangwo, the representative of UNESCO, in her speech, said if Nigeria was willing to pay the price, the eradication of the education marginalisation could be achieved.
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