Group urges investment in digital skills
The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) has canvassed improvement in the standard of education to tackle the high rate of out-of-school population in the country. 
 
It also observed that the significance of this year’s World Literacy Day must not be lost on governments of the federation, both at the federal and sub-national units.
 
In a statement yesterday by its National Secretary, Achike Chude, to commemorate the global event, NUJ submitted that the various efforts by the different entities and institutions to raise the standard of education in the country had not been enough.
 
The union noted: “The new annual global education monitoring report by UNESCO indicates that 251 million are out of school (OOS), which is a mere reduction of one per cent since 2015.
 
“In Africa, especially Sub-Saharan Africa, the indicators are dire. The report shows a clear connection between illiteracy and countries in extreme poverty.
“Similarly, a previous 2022 report by UNICEF had shown that one in three children is out of school in Nigeria. This means 10.2 million at the primary level and 8.1 million at the junior secondary school (JSS) level, while 1. 12 million children never attended school and 5.9 million left school early.” 

NUJ further described as “outrageous and unsustainable” the country’s out-of-school population, which accounts for 15 per cent of the global total. 
 
“The situation is not helped by the constant search for new and greener pastures by teachers and educators beyond the shores of our country, thereby adding to the greatly diminished numbers of those emptying of our education system,” it added.
 
The body, however, called on governments and institutions of government to brace up for the challenge to ensure that “our people are made literate through deliberate policies and investments in education, as well as provide much greater incentives to educators.”

IN a similar vein, the National Association of Seadogs (Pyrates Confraternity), Sahara Deck of Abuja Municipal, yesterday, urged authorities in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to prioritise digital literacy in schools.
 
It warned that the country risks being left behind in the global knowledge economy if urgent measures are not taken.
 
Leader of the Sahara Deck, Mr. Chike Onyia, gave the charge in a statement to mark the 2025 International Literacy Day, themed “Promoting Literacy in the Digital Era: Bridging the Gap.”
 
He lamented that despite the growing importance of digital skills, many young people in the FCT remain excluded due to poverty, street hawking, and rising numbers of out-of-school children, while public schools continue to suffer from poor staffing, weak infrastructure, and a lack of Internet facilities.
 
Onyia said: “Globally, digital literacy is measured by one’s ability to use, understand, evaluate and create information using digital technologies and the Internet.  With the proliferation of IDP camps, street hawking and rising cases of out-of-school children, we need to work extra hard to attain a respectable level of digital literacy in the country and the FCT. 
 
“In this digital era, there is an urgent need to invest heavily in digital skills, especially among the young. The world is increasingly turning attention to digital skills, and we cannot afford to be left behind. Unfortunately, we still grapple with the issue of basic amenities in most government-run schools.” 
 
He called on the FCT Minister, as well as the Senator representing the territory, and other stakeholders to give special attention to schools in rural and underserved areas, where “facilities are particularly poor.”