By Erick Nyayiera
Men in Bondo sub county, Siaya County have been urged to support the Adult and Continuous Education program by allowing their wives who wish to improve their literacy level to pursue adult education.
Speaking during the celebration of the International Literacy Day in Bondo, Area sub county Adult and Continuous Education officer Mrs. Cecelia Ario said they have had numerous cases of men pulling their wives out of adult education classes or even requesting for deregistration of their wives scheduled to sit national examinations after learning for years.
“Through the adult education program, both male and female adults who did not get a chance to pursue formal education have a second chance to pursue their dreams and this should be supported by everybody in the society,” Ario explained.
She expressed concern about the low number of male adult learners saying that out of the 185 adult learners registered across the 13 centers in Bondo sub- County, only fifty three are male.
She revealed that the department of adult education is faced with a myriad of challenges like understaffing, late payment of tokens to instructors and lack of learning materials.
‘I urge all stakeholders in the education sector to support us by sharing excess learning materials. NGOs can help private learners so that no section of the community is disadvantaged due to low literacy levels,’ Ario said.
The national international literacy day celebration themed Literacy for a human centred recovery: Narrowing the digital divide was marked in Laikipia County.
Speaking during the event, the Principal Secretary for State Department of Early Learning and Basic Education DR Julius Jwan called upon stakeholders in the education sector to bridge the digital divide so that many learners can access education when face to face interaction becomes impossible.
‘The COVID 19 pandemic has given us an opportunity to relook at the role digital platforms play in sustaining and expanding the acquisition of literacy and numeracy skills,’ Dr. Jwan said.
