Literacy education plays a crucial role in national development by empowering individuals and communities. It improves economic outcomes by creating more opportunities for employment, entrepreneurship and wealth creation. A literate populace also enhances political participation, effective communication, and social progress including reduced mortality rates. Literacy education civilizes society, minimizes violence, and improves standards of living across communities. For a nation to develop sustainably, universal access to literacy education must be prioritized to equip citizens with the skills needed to participate fully in the economic, social, and political progress of the nation.

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THE PLACE OF LITERACY IN NATIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
BY
UMOREN, PAUL U

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TABLE OF CONTENT
1.0 INTRODUCTION
2.0 MEANING AND EXPLANATION OF LITERACY
3.0 WHAT IS LITERACY EDUCATION
3.1 FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE ACQUISITION of LITERACY
4.0HOW LITERACY EDUCATION AFFECT NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
5.0THE PLACE OF LITERACY EDUCATION IN NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
6.0 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

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1.0 INTRODUCTION
In every nation in the world, education is considered as the fundamental element for
National Development. This is because educating the mind is inculcating orderliness in
the utilization of human and natural resources for the betterment of the society. This
bring to the fact that literacy education plays important role in elimination of Illiteracy
which limits the attainment of sustainable human development and affects labour force,
economy and social well being of the society. In this contemporary age of ours an
illiterate person is considered to be circumscribed and hence incapacitated from playing
his/her potential roles in the socio- political, economic and national development. Such
an individual tends to live a marginal life and is vulnerable to exploitation by others. The
high illiteracy rate in Nigeria today can be regarded as one major factor responsible for
slowing down national development. A nation cannot achieve sustainable development
without good governance, strong economy and good education. It is a known fact that no
nation can rise above the quality of its educated citizenry. Literacy Education aims at
developing the individual who in turn is expected to contribute to the development of the
society. When an individual is developing, by extension, the nation is developing. A
major characteristics of literacy education is its emphasis on development. There is a
positive correlation between quality of education and level of development. Also, the
importance of teachers and the role they play in the educational process are central to
basic education.
In the Nigerian context, basic education may be provided through primary nomadic,
junior secondary and adult literacy education programme. Literacy in the context of this
paper refers to the ability to possess the basic skills of reading, writing and numerical
computation for effective participation in the affairs of the society while the literacy
education involves the process of transferring the basic skills of literacy to one under
supervision and guidance.

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The government is determined to eradicate illiteracy by educating its citizenry through
the Universal Basic Education (UBE), programme in 1999. In spite of the prevalent
problems encountered by the programme there has been a ‘record of successes’ and for
that the Federal Government is commended.
2.0 MEANING AND BACKGROUND OF LITERACY
Literacy is a fundamental human right and the foundation for lifelong learning. It is fully
essential to social and human development in its ability to transform lives. For
individuals, families, and societies alike, it is an instrument of empowerment to improve
one’s health, one’s income, and one’s relationship with the world.
The uses of literacy for the exchange of knowledge are constantly evolving, along with
advances in technology. From the Internet to text messaging, the ever-wider availability
of communication makes for greater social and political participation. A literate
community is a dynamic community which enhances National Development, one that
exchanges ideas and engages in debate. Illiteracy, however, is an obstacle to a better
quality of life, and can even breed exclusion and violence.
For over 65 years UNESCO has worked to ensure that literacy remains a priority on
national and international agendas as a catalyst for National Development. Through its
formal and non-formal literacy programmes worldwide, the Organization works to realize
the vision of a literate world for all.
Literacy is thought to have first emerged with the development of numeracy and
computational devices as early as 8,000 BCE. According to Stephen Chrisomalis,
independent script development occurred at four times in human history in Mesopotamia,
Egypt, lowland Mesoamerica, and China.
The earliest forms of written communication originated in Sumer, located in southern
Mesopotamia in 8000 BCE. Peter Easton states, during this era, literacy was "a largely

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functional matter, propelled by the need to manage the new quantities of information and
the new type of governance created by trade and large scale production". Denise
Schmandt-Besserat argues that writing systems in Mesopotamia first emerged from a
recording system in which people used impressed token markings to manage trade and
agricultural production. The token system served as a precursor to early cuneiform
writing once people began simply recording information on clay tablets. According to
Chrisomalis, proto-cuneiform texts exhibit not only numerical signs, but also ideograms
depicting objects being counted.
Egyptian hieroglyphs emerged from 3300-3100 BCE and depicted royal iconography that
emphasized power amongst other elites. The Egyptian hieroglyphic writing system was
the first notation system to have phonetic values.
Writing in lowland Mesoamerica was first put into practice by the Olmec and Zapotec
civilizations in 900-400 BCE. These civilizations used glyphic writing and bar-and-dot
numerical notation systems for purposes related to royal iconography and calendar
systems.
The earliest written notations in China date back to the Shang Dynasty in 1200 BCE.
These systematic notations were found inscribed on bones and recorded sacrifices made,
tributes received, and animals hunted, which were activities of the elite. These oracle-
bone inscriptions were the early ancestors of modern Chinese script and contained
logosyllabic script and numerals.
These examples indicate that early acts of literacy were closely tied to power and chiefly
used for management practices.

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3.0 THE MEANING OF LITERACY EDUCATION
Literacy has been defined as: "The ability to read, write and use numeracy, to handle
information, to express ideas and opinions, to make decisions and solve problems, as
family members, workers, citizens and lifelong learners, while Education in its general
sense is a form of learning in which the knowledge, skills, and habits of a group of people
are transferred from one generation to the next through teaching, training, or research.
Education frequently takes place under the guidance of others, but may also be
autodidactic. Any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or
acts may be considered educational. Therefore, Literacy Education is the process of
transferring or teaching individuals, a group of people how to read, write and use
numeracy to handle information, to express ideas and opinions, to make decisions and
solve problems, etc under strict supervision and guidance of others such as a teacher,
instructors or anybody with authority to educate others.
3.1 HOW LITERACY EDUCATION AFFECT NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
There are many ways in which Literacy Education Affect National Development. It is a
common fact that any country who does not give prior attention to Literacy Education is
liable to under-development. The points below highlight how Literacy Education Affect
National Development:
Economic impact: Many policy analysts consider literacy rates as a crucial measure of
the value of a region's human capital. For example, literate people can be more easily
trained than illiterate people - and generally have a higher socioeconomic status; thus
they enjoy better health and employment prospects. Literacy increases job opportunities
and access to higher education. As a result of Literacy Education, Nigeria is now a
developing country economically today, because many openings for investment are
created especially in the aspect of skills acquisition and entrepreneurship development.
Political Awareness: Literacy is considerably responsible for most forms of electoral
malpractices. These include apathy towards politics, rigging, thuggery, sale of votes. It is

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the literate politicians who manipulate the illiterate to commit all nefarious political
activities. Here literacy is used adversely. In other to stop this, there is an urgent need for
literacy education to the grass root communities which will initiate decency in the
political system and enhances national development.
Effective Communication: A literate person knows that he has the grace to interact with
other persons of various backgrounds more easily than the illiterates. This is because the
literate has acquired literacy education of the national and international language to
communicate effectively. That is talking when the occasion demands for that. With the
ability to communicate effectively, a literate person is able to contribute positively to the
national development.
Female and Child Mortality Rate Reduction: In Kerala, India, for example, female and
child mortality rates declined dramatically in the 1960s, when girls schooled according to
the education reforms after 1948 began to raise families. In addition to the potential for
literacy to increase wealth, wealth may promote literacy, through cultural norms and
easier access to schools and tutoring services. Even in Nigeria, as a result of awareness
and sensitization through Literacy Education, child mortality rate is on the reducing rate
which has helped in National Development this is because young people are well
educated on the family planning. This is as a result of literacy education.
Community Development: Literacy Education creates cultural awareness and greater
appreciation especially, of the need for development. It tackles man to action about
himself and his society, literacy helps the community take a leap in the right direction. It
is a fact that communities are the integral parts of the National Development.
Minimizing of Violence And Vices In The Society:
It is a fact that educated mind is bound to behave orderly in the society. As a result of
educating the young minds concerning the importance of peaceful co-existence in the
society, there have been order and peace in some parts of the country. This is because the

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youths are exposed to right information through Literacy Education. As a result, this
helps in National Development.
High Standard of Living And National Well Being:
With Literacy Education, You stand a chance to be placed in high esteem in the society
and you earn a substantial income but without Literacy Education, no matter how best
you are in your field of endeavour, you will always be below others with higher level of
Literacy Education. When the standard of living of the citizenry in the country is high, it
directly or indirectly influences the National Development.
Civilization of the Nation
Literacy Education has a civilizing effect on societies. In fact, in Webster's Dictionary
literacy is defined as the state of being cultured (Mish, 697). This culture allows society
to advance in areas outside of the economic realm. This mixture of the survival value and
cultural characteristics of Literacy Education is what makes it relevant in National
Development. The a generation is educated with right skills and information, the impact
lingers through generation. This implies that Literacy education is a catalyst for nation
civilization.
Adaptability Power:
Literacy Education is a form of adaptation. It enables you to have a commonsense on
how to easily adapt in any situation because it exposes you to the real situation of the
society with tactical power of adaptability. This means, the literate individual's life
derives its meaning and significance from intellectual, aesthetic, and spiritual
participation in the accumulated creations and knowledge of humankind, made available
through the written word. Literacy helps provide a basis on which people may come
together and thoughtfully make decisions which enhances adaptability and National
Development.

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It is also noteworthy that in a society where the adults are ill-informed, poor and diseases-
ridden, dependent and crippled by illiteracy, the future of their children, who themselves
are future adults, become precarious and susceptible to inheriting all the ills and damages
accompanying illiteracy. To stem this possible tide, international organizations concerned
with Sustainable Human Department (SHD) have not only accorded greater attention to
form school system but to other form of education that would provide for those who may
not have had opportunity to attend formal education. This will contribute positively to the
National Development.
3.2 FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE ACQUISITION OF LITERACY
EDUCATION
A number of factors combine to impede the acquisition of literacy education in
developing countries. These are:
i. Level of Parental Education
It is common knowledge that children whose parents are literate and serving as
government officials tend to have ready access to education. This is because
their parents are aware of the need for western education. But incidentally, this
ideology is lucking among most illiterate parents who do not actually realize
and appreciate the importance of literacy education.
ii. Influence of the culture of the people
What people hold dear to themselves and practice have tremendous influence
on other related activities within the community. We are aware of some people
in Nigeria whose culture make them to keep their women in purdah. Some
women are thus hidden and in turn denied education. Often in some areas, only
boys are allowed to go to school at the expense of the girls. This sex
stereotyping remains one of the most retrogressive practices in Nigeria and in
Africa at large.
iii. Poor Socio-economic Status

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Among the illiterate parents, there are people who would have wished to send
their children to school, but could not because they do not have the money.
This situation becomes compounded when there are many children in the
family. Only few children sometimes only allowed boys to go to school. But
now with the current initiate of government with free education to secondary
level, the reverse is the case.
iv. Geographical Limitations
Sometimes, remote societies are denied education because of lack if
accessibility. It is difficult to establish schools there and when they are
established , hardly are the teachers and other personnel willing to serve there.
4.0 THE PLACE OF LITERACY EDUCATION IN NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Education is recognized as the most important catalyst for national development. It is
seen as a tool for upliftment of the underprivileged. Education is Sui generic to the
attainment of economic development. It is a veritable “ingredient” or “potent
instrument/tool” of development. Nwagwu (1976) observed that: Education is universally
accepted as a form of investment in human Beings which yields economic benefits or
returns and contributes to a Nations wealth and development by increasing the productive
and consumptive capacity of its citizen.
Viewed in this way, all expenditure on education can to a great extent be justified in
terms of the potential contribution to economic growth and national development.
Worldwide, therefore, countries of the world continue to initiate educational processes
and procedures, which would not only serve their unique socio-political and economic
circumstances but also conform to fundamental universal standard of delivery. This is
partly why basic education is genuinely receiving the attention it rightly deserves. It is
imperative to note that basic education comprises a wide variety of learners acquired
functional literacy. Since Nigeria’s attainment of independence in 1960, educational

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development has been a major challenge for successive governments. It is therefore, not
surprising that the Federal Government in 1976 singled out primary education and
launched the Universal Primary Education (UPE). The UPE was made free and universal
throughout the federation. The overall purpose was to boost school enrolment and correct
educational imbalance between boys and girls and different parts of the country. It was
left to the state and local government. UPE succeeded in raising school enrolment and
consciousness of the populace for education but was not properly funded and managed.
The result was a gradual but steady decline in enrolment, attendance, infrastructure etc.
Before then National Mass Literacy campaign was launched in 1987. President Obasanjo
in September, 1999, launched the UBE programme in his presidential address during the
launching he compared UPE and UBE thus:
“The Universal Basic Education programme is almost the same as the old UPE scheme. It
is free and universal like before, but now in addition, it will be compulsory.” But having
carefully reviewed our current national needs, our administration has decided to give out
a broader focus. Thus, the new UBE now extends to all children from age six to fifteen. It
will accommodate them from primary school to junior secondary school. It will devote as
much attention to producing trained and qualified teachers as to providing a large enough
number of schools to take in all children who are eligible for enrolment in them. The role
of education in the development of a society has been vastly documented. It is however,
not the focus of the section. Perhaps, it is necessary to go down memory lane of
education in Nigeria. Nigeria has toiled with some educational programmes, for example,
the national UPE, launched in 1976, failed due to lack of funds brought about by
corruption, among other glaring factors. The president, Olusegun Obasanjo, declared
during the launching of the programme in Sokoto that the nation “cannot afford to fail
this time around”. Not long after that, the Federal Government reported that the falling
standard of education in Nigeria is caused by acute shortage of qualified teachers at the
primary school level.

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Through the states in federation Literacy Education has taken dominant place in strategic
planning of the nation. To make this a reality and to meet the Millennium Development
Goals, many states have declared free compulsory literacy education as well make
provision for stipends in order to encourage pupils and students to take active part in the
Universal Basic Education (UBE) provided by the government.
5.0 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
From these components, it is seen that literacy education will remain the life wire of
Universal Basic Education. This is apparently due to the fact that without the means of
literacy education, our people would have no idea whatsoever of what their potentials are.
They will continue to lack the key to unlock either past or present fountains of knowledge
or the informal vision of the future (Ayuba, 2000). Suffice it to say that the successful
education of our youth and children requires as it were placing greater urgent attention on
literacy education. This is because it is only a literate adult that would appreciate the need
to send their children to school, which help in National Education.

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(Mdgs) In
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Solarin University Of Education Ijagun, Ogun State, Nigeria
Ijaduola, K. O. (1999). Economic incentives and teachers performance in selected
secondary schools in Abeokuta Township. Journal of Educational Advancement. 4 (2),
62-68.
Ijaduola, K. O. (2007a), Towards effective implementation of Universal Basic
Education (UBE) in Nigeria. International Journal for Educationists 1, 126- 135.
Ntia U. Ntia (2002), Adult Basic Education-For Positive Behaviour Change Among The
Literates, Abang-ani Paublishers, Calabr- CRS-Nigeria
"The Plurality of Literacy and its implications for Policies and Programs". UNESCO
Education Sector Position Paper: 13. 2004.
Easton, P. (in press). "History and spread of literacy", Excerpted from Sustaining
Literacy in Africa: Developing a Literate Environment, Paris: UNESCO Press pp. 46-56.