Editorial
Commitment to literacy
It awaits fulfillment
International Literacy Day, observed rather ritualistically, is a grim reminder of the country's underperformance in this sector. It is bad news that even after 40 years of independence the country has around 3.73 crore people who cannot read or write. True, the literacy rate has gone up from a measly 16 percent in 1971 to a more respectable 53 percent in 2009, but the improvement is still nowhere near the expected level.
This year's theme for observing the day was" Literacy and Women's empowerment". Obviously, functional literacy has a great bearing on socio-economic change and this is particularly true about women in rural Bangladesh who are lagging behind. So, there should be special emphasis on women's literacy if we want to ensure a level playing field for all.
The government is now launching two special projects Basic Literacy and Continuing Education (project 1 and 2) at a huge cost of taka 3,000 crore to inject life into the literacy drive. A similar project, Total Literacy Movement, was introduced in 1996 as part of the plan to supplement the literacy campaign. But it was later abandoned by the BNP government which brought allegations of irregularities and mismanagement against the project managers.
Whatever might be the rationale behind the BNP government's decision, it is evident that such projects suffer when a new regime takes over. Clearly, projects initiated by the previous government are viewed with suspicion, even when it comes to a crucially important sector like education. Project-based operations seem to be inadequate for other reasons also. Such projects exist for a specific period of time, but a literacy drive should be a continual process.
Experts, therefore, are not convinced that the projects designed to augment the literacy drive are attaining their objectives. A former education adviser to a caretaker government has suggested that the drive be made a part of mainstream education, pointing out the limitations of the project-based approach. She laid much emphasis on long-term planning to eliminate illiteracy.
We share her views since the literacy drive cannot be a short-term affair, given the harsh truth that such a staggering number of people are still illiterate. However, it is also imperative that the projects initiated by a government are not terminated by its successor only on political grounds. A broader consensus among the major parties is needed to further streamline the literacy drive.
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