Secretary’s Opening Remarks at the Press Briefing on UNESCO Regional Conference in Support of Global Literacy
1. The National Literacy Mission (NLM) was
launched by Shri Rajiv Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India on 5 May 1988
with the objective of imparting functional literacy to adult illiterates in the
15-35 age group. The goal was to
achieve 75% literacy rate by 2007. The
NLM has adopted a campaign approach, the success of which rests on the
mobilisation of social forces and on securing people’s participation. The first
breakthrough in achieving total literacy in the country came in Kottayam and
later in Ernakulam district of Kerala in 1989.
This was followed by achieving total literacy in the entire state of
Kerala in 1990.
1.1 Thereafter, Total Literacy Campaign
(TLC) became the dominant strategy for eradication of adult illiteracy in
India. The thrust of such a programme is on attainment of functional literacy
through prescribed norms of literacy and numeracy. Though the literacy campaign
is essentially meant to impart functional literacy, it also disseminates a
‘basket’ of other socially relevant messages, such as enrolment and retention
of children in schools; immunisation; propagation of small family norms;
promotion of maternity and childcare; women’s equality; and empowerment, peace
and communal harmony.
1.2 Recognizing
the fragile nature of literacy and the need to create a learning society on a
sustainable basis, the National Literacy Mission provides for post- literacy programme where the gains of
literacy are consolidated so that the learner does not relapse into illiteracy.
The programme attempts to re-inforce the basic literacy skills of reading,
writing, numeracy and to enable the beneficiaries to apply the skills in their
day to day life. The campaigns are
implemented by Zilla Sakshartha Samities, which are generally headed by the
District Collector or the President of the Zilla Parishad.
1.3 In order to provide opportunities for
life long learning to the large number of neo literates who emerged from the
literacy campaigns Continuing Education Centres (CECs) were set up which
function as a library and reading room, information window on development
programmes, charcha mandal, cultural centre and provide facilities for sports
and leisure activities.
2. Goals
and Strategy for the 11th Plan
2.1 The target
for the 11th Plan is to
achieve 85% literacy by 2012. At the same time the gender gap in literacy is to
be reduced to 10% alongwith bridging of regional, social and gender
disparities. Special focus would be
given to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Minorities and rural women. Focus would also be on the low literacy states,
tribal areas, other disadvantaged groups and adolescents.
2.2 A revamped strategy of NLM is being
formulated for the 11th Plan. The existing schemes of basic
literacy, post literacy and continuing education are being merged into single
scheme of ‘Adult Education & Skill Development’ . A broad based programme known as Lifelong Education and Awareness
Programme (LEAP) is being introduced, where the thrust would be on addressing
the learning needs of the illiterates, neo-literates and providing them with
opportunities of life long learning and skill development and linking them with
issues of rights, governance and livelihood.
Different types of learning packages and learning programmes to suit the
needs of various categories of beneficiaries would be provided. Convergence of literacy programmes with
other development programmes and mainstreaming the neo-literates and other
school dropouts through equivalence programmes would be some of the highlights
of the new scheme.
2.2 The main
features of the revamped strategy of NLM are
(i)
Introducing a broad based Lifelong Education and Awareness
Programme (LEAP), which would offer diverse learning programmes, functional
skills, Quality of Life Improvement Programmes, Vocational Skills and
Equivalency Programmes.
(ii)
Creation of Centres for Lifelong Education and Awareness
(CLEAR) which would be multifunctional and multidimensional in nature seeking
to provide a variety of learning programmes to beneficiaries
(iii)
Establishing 250 new
Jan Shikshan Sansthans by 2012.
(iv)
Existing State Resource Centres would be strengthened to
provide academic and technical resource support for the literacy programmes.
(v)
Information & Communication Technologies (ICTs) would be
more widely used to spread literacy in the country.
(vi)
Integrating Zilla Saksharata Samitis with the Panchayati Raj
Institutions.
(vii)
Bringing literacy
programmes at various levels under Panchayati Raj structures at Block/Gram
Panchayat levels, through Panchayat Saksharata Samitis.
3. UNESCO Regional Conference
3.1 The Department is co-hosting with
UNESCO, a Regional Conference on Global Literacy on 29-30th
November, 2007 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. Smt. Sonia Gandhi has kindly consented to be the Chief Guest of
the inaugural session. Dr. (Mrs) Shanta
Sinha, Chairperson National Commission for Protection of Child Rights will be
the keynote speaker. Shri Arjun Singh,
Minister for Human Resource Development will also address the Conference.
3.2 The Conference at Delhi is a part of a
series of regional conferences being organized as a follow up of the White
House Conference on Global Literacy held in September 2006 hosted by Laura
Bush, first Lady of the united States of America and Honorary Ambassador for
the United Nations Literacy Decade (UNLD)
3.3 The New Delhi Conference is the fourth
in the series of six Regional Conferences being organized covering Arab States,
Asia and the Pacific, Europe and the Latin America and Caribbean as a part of
major drive to promote literacy at national and international levels. Other
three conferences held earlier were at (1) Doha, Qatar, on 12-14 March, 2007,
(2) Beijing, People’s Republic of China on 31 July and 1 August 2007, and
(3) Bamako, Mali, on 10-12 September,
2007.
3.4 Mrs. Shiranthi Rajapaksa, the First Lady
from Sri Lanka has kindly consented to attend the Conference. Ministers of
Education and Finance Ministers of the 14 countries of the region namely
Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Islamic Republic of Iran, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyz Republic, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan
and Uzbekistan are among the other dignitaries expected to grace the occasion.
The Conference will organize Five Roundtable on main challenges, trends, gaps,
achievements and innovations in the region and make recommendations on how to
promote literacy. The Conference will also organize panels on several important
issues concerning literacy. Eminent
experts from the respective fields have been invited to make presentations in
these panels.
3.5 The New Delhi Conference will address
literacy challenges specific to the sub-region, advocate literacy for all and
lay the groundwork for concrete country support. It will also present and disseminate innovative and effective
literacy practices from the sub region; identify and discuss main challenges
and achievements in literacy and make recommendations on the way forward;
decide on new courses of action; build cooperation among stakeholders; and
mobilize partners and resources for concrete interventions at the country level.
4. Achievements And Best
Practices
4.1 As we are poised to enter the 11th
plan period we have to take stock of literacy situation in the country. We have
made significant progress in literacy in the last century. In 1901 India had a
low crude literacy rate of 5.35% with male literacy at 9.83% and female
literacy at 0.60%. At the time of independence (in 1951) literacy had risen to
only 18.33% with male literacy at 27.16% and female literacy at 8.86%. In 2001,
the literacy rate had risen phenomenally to 64.84% with a male literacy rate of
75.26% and female literacy rate of 53.67%.
However, India has still a large number of illiterates and strenuous
efforts need to be made to cover all these people.The Regional Conference held
in New Delhi is timely, as it will focus attention nationally and
internationally on a very important issue.
There are 771 million illiterates in the 15+ age group in the world out
of which nearly 268 million are in our country alone. During the deliberations
the best practices adopted in India by the programme implementing agencies are
being showcased.
4.1 Although
the literacy campaigns are being implemented with varying degrees of success,
remarkable progress was achieved on several fronts. The campaign was also
responsible in the movements on the social evils like anti liquor, dowry
system, child marriage and thrift and credit. It also created a conducive
environment in reducing the drop out rate of children from school, enrolment of
children in the primary schools and success of immunization campaigns.
4.2 Several instances can be cited of the
innovations introduced under NLM by a number of districts of the country in
implementing the programme. A few of
these examples are:
(i)
In Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh, which is beset by
Naxal violence the Zilla Sakshartha Samiti, motivated and coached 17,000
neo-literates to appear for Class V examination out of which nearly 12,000 are
reported to have passed. Many of the neo-literates who passed the V Standard
exams have been employed as peons, Anganwadi workers and cooks in schools and
other government institutions.
(ii)
Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra (RLEK) an NGO
working amongst the Van Gujjars, living in the forest areas of Uttar Pradesh
and Uttaranchal were imparted literacy through 350 motivated volunteer teachers
who lived them
(iii)
The Preraks of the
continuing education programme in Dhanbad district helped the beneficiaries in
the registration under National Rural
Employment Guarantee (NREG) programme and in having job cards issued to them.
(iv)
In Raichur district
of Karnataka, Preraks of the continuing
education centres worked as literacy instructors in NREG during the leisure time at the worksite and the shelter
for rest was utilized to teach literacy to the illiterate workers. This was later extended to four other
districts.
(v)
In Chhattisgarh a book reading programme took shape through
a series of meetings with district level literacy functionaries for over a
year.
(vi)
Jyothirgamaya – “leading from darkness to light” was a Total
Primary Education project implemented in Nilambur Panchayat in Malappuram
District in Kerala where, about 1500 learners were brought up to Standard IV
level.
(vii)
In the Computer Based Functional Literacy (CBFL) developed
by the Tata Consultancy Services a computer aided teaching-learning package of
40 hours duration was prepared to make adult illiterates to pick up newspaper
reading proficiency
4.3
There are many more such instances of innovation in
districts like Sarguja, Hoshiarpur, Roopnagar etc. as also by many of the Jan Shikshan
Sansthans and State Resource Centres.
It is hoped that other districts in the country will take inspiration to
replicate the best practices in their districts so that the goal of NLM is
achieved in time.
4.4
The New Delhi Conference aims to foster partnership among
the key stakeholders, decision makers, civil society, non-government
organizations, private service providers as well as bilateral and multilateral
organizations at the international level working in the field of literacy and
education. The association of print and
electronic media is also crucial for creating mass awareness and to create an
environment conducive for literacy. It
is hoped that the conference will ultimately lead to renewed commitment and
come up with recommendations and action plan in pursuance of the cause of
literacy for achieving the goal of education for all.
HB/Hb
(Release ID :33346)