International Literacy Day: Govt now targets 100pc literacy by 2030
After missing the target of eradicating adult illiteracy by 2014, the government is now planning to make everyone able to read and write and vocationally upskilled by 2030.
Around 24.40 percent of people aged 15 and older are still illiterate even though the ruling Awami League in its 2008 election manifesto promised to eradicate illiteracy by 2014. The National Education Policy 2010, framed by the AL-led government in 2009, also set a target of ensuring 100 percent literacy by 2014.
In 2008, at least 48.8 percent of the people aged 15 and above were illiterate, according to the BBS Literacy Assessment Survey 2008.
Quoting Bangladesh Sample Vital Statistics 2020 released by Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, Zakir Hossen, state minister for primary and mass education, yesterday said literacy rate for people aged 15 and above stands at 75.6 percent.
"We will not be able to make the desired development if we cannot make the 24.4 percent illiterate people literate," he told a press conference marking the International Literacy Day today.
Literacy is attained in two ways -- formal education and adult literacy programmes -- and the country's focus has always been on formal education, with adult literacy programmes getting less priority.
Talking to The Daily Star, several Bureau of Non-Formal Education (BNFE) officials said the AL government pledged to eradicate illiteracy, but it could not take up any project under the bureau until 2014.
Assuming power in 2009, the AL-led government planned to take up two Tk 3,000-crore projects and sought assistance from donors. But it had to shelve the projects as none of the donors came forward, said the officials.
Campaigners blamed the absence of proper planning, lack of will and financing as well as incapacity of BNFE for the failure.
"There was political commitment but eradicating illiteracy did not get the due importance in terms of planning and financing," said KM Enamul Hoque, deputy director of Campaign for Popular Education (CAMPE).
He pointed out that since 2009, BNFE completed only one project -- Basic Literacy Project.
Under the project undertaken in 2014 and completed in June this year, BNFE provided literacy skills to 44.60 lakh people aged 15 and above.
The government is now implementing another project to provide non-formal education to nine lakh children aged 8-14 years who have either dropped out of or never went to school.
The project will be completed by June next year.
"These initiatives were not enough for making the country free from illiteracy. We needed a continuous and comprehensive project for the eradication of illiteracy. Project-based initiatives mean all activities end when the projecttime expires," Enamul said.
Aminul Islam Khan, senior secretary of the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education, said the pace of increase of literacy rate is slow for different reasons, including the pandemic.
"We are working on eradication of illiteracy by 2030. We are chalking out a comprehensive plan. We will take our interventions to the grassroots level by empowering BNFE more. We are having the analysis on intervention methods done which will not be limited to project-wise approach," he added.
He said the government was planning vocationally upskilling 15-year-olds and older apart from making them literate.
"You will see the planning in full soon," he said.
Bangladesh is celebrating International Literacy Day today with the theme "Transforming Literacy Learning Spaces".
Zakir said the BNFE would hold a discussion at its office today.
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