The Vice Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the 2019 general elections, and former governor of Anambra State, Mr Peter Obi, has stated that increased access to education remains a critical key strategy that could be employed to reduce poverty in the country.
Mr Obi opined that Nigeria would successfully move millions of people out of poverty if leaders invest more in education, which remains a key sector of economic growth.
The former governor who made the assertion in a message to mark the International Literacy Day, 2020, said access to high quality basic education was a globally recognised solution to breaking the chains of poverty, especially in developing countries like Nigeria.
He explained that the International Literacy Day celebration provided Nigerian leaders another opportunity to reflect on their contributions towards educational provisions to Nigerian children who had no access to good education.
According to him, consequent upon the changing nature of the global economy, driven by technological advancements and globalisation, it is now more important than ever to invest in human capital and ensure that everyone has access to basic education to ensure success in life.
He asserted that a developing country like Nigeria, truly desirous of lifting millions of her citizens out of poverty, must invest in education, especially at the basic level.
Obi lamented that over 13 million children were out of school in Nigeria, describing such as a recipe not just for economic stagnancy but also for national disaster.
He maintained that unless Nigerian leaders committed substantial resources to accommodating a greater number of out of school children in education, Nigeria’s economy would continue to limp and national peace and security might continue to elude the nation.
The International Literacy Day is celebrated on September 8 every year.
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