NOA Urges Nigerians to Embrace Literacy for National Identity, Social Cohesion
Abuja (Core Reporters) The National Orientation Agency (NOA) has called on Nigerians to embrace literacy as a powerful tool for promoting national identity, fostering social cohesion, and addressing poverty, especially among underserved populations. This was to commemorate the 2025 World Literacy Day.
According to the Director General of the Agency, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, this year’s commemoration presents a vital opportunity for Nigerians to reflect on the transformative role of literacy in reducing poverty, fostering lifelong learning, and advancing a more inclusive and equitable society.
Issa-Onilu notes that literacy goes beyond the basic ability to read and write; it serves as a gateway to knowledge, innovation, and meaningful participation in the democratic process.
He also urges Nigerians from all walks of life, including parents, teachers, community leaders, policymakers, and civil society actors, to renew their commitment to advancing literacy as a collective responsibility.
Encouraging children, youths, and adults to embrace reading and lifelong learning, he calls for the strengthening of public and community libraries as vital hubs for knowledge and civic participation.
Issa-Onilu, who enjoins the public to invest in digital literacy to equip themselves for the demands of the 21st-century knowledge economy, also calls for support of initiatives that remove barriers to education, especially for women, girls, and other vulnerable groups.
The DG states that the Agency will continue to leverage its nationwide structures to sensitise, mobilise, and collaborate with stakeholders in promoting literacy as a vital tool for social cohesion, national identity, and sustainable development.
“A literate Nigeria is a stronger Nigeria. Together, let us make reading and learning a culture that defines us as a people,” he says
