International Literacy Day today: 23 districts to be declared fully literate

KATHMANDU, September 8: The International Literacy Day is being celebrated today in the country through virtual and other means. 

The theme of the International Literacy Day this year is “Literacy for a human-centred recovery: Narrowing the digital divide.” 

The Centre for Education and Human Resource Development has planned a tree plantation programme in Bhaktapur to mark the occasion.

The literacy rate of 15 and above age group is currently 67.9 per cent. The literacy rate of the males belonging to this age group is 78.6 per cent and that of females is 59.7 per cent.

Fifty four districts of the country have been declared attaining full literacy while 23 districts and 218 local levels remain to be declared so.

There are 35 thousand 674 schools in operation in the country at present. Out of these, 27 thousand 818 are community schools, 6732 institutional (private) schools and 1,130 religious schools, the Centre stated.

After the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world, education was shifted to online platforms in most countries. While most students were able to access their online classes, some missed out on their studies and suffered a great academic loss due to the lack of resources and finances required for digital devices.

This created a digital divide between students. To bridge this growing gap between society, International Literacy Day 2021 is being celebrated today.

In this connection, the UNESCO tweeted, “Digital skills have become a key factor to access life-saving information. But over half of the world’s population lack basic skills for computer-based activities. We must step up efforts to expand #literacy and digital skills for all!”

International Literacy Day draws attention to the fact that there are a lot of people in this world who struggle to get an education in the 21st century. Despite the modernization of the education system, it is known that over 773 adults don’t have basic education, most of which are women.

This day is celebrated to empower and motivate the world to work towards spreading the importance of education and do their part to make education more accessible to those who are less fortunate than them.