Cazenga - Angolan government pledges to keep its ambitious goal to eradicate illiteracy in the country which entails the creation of more classrooms and improving the professional qualifications of teachers.
The commitment was reiterated by Secretary of State for Secondary Education Gildo Matias José on Friday in the municipality of Cazenga, Luanda.
Addressing a central event to mark International Literacy Day, the official said that these actions are intended to reduce illiteracy among youth and adults.
He expressed greater concern about young women in rural and urban areas, as well as reducing the backlog of schooling.
The official noted that it is not enough to ensure that all Angolans (children and young people) learn to read and write, but it is necessary to ensure that, once they are in the education system, they fulfil at least the minimum compulsory schooling, because "the future of any nation depends largely on education".
Gildo Matias emphasised the need to focus on increasing the supply of classrooms and training more qualified teachers before they start teaching, in order to guarantee the fulfilment of the goal of stopping this problem.
"The challenges are great and the appeal goes out to those who are in a position to complement the public effort to do so, because we would all be contributing to a greater good, guaranteeing the fundamental right to education," he said.
He put at 324,720, the number of pupils enrolled this school year in literacy and post-literacy classes, including modules I, II and III, while 102,751 are attending the first cycle.
In turn, the national permanent secretary of UNESCO, Alexandre Costa, read out a message from the director-general of UNESCO, in which he emphasised, among other things, that the right to education should be re-established without delay.
The event was marked by the presentation of certificates and tablets to the supervisors that facilitate them in performing their activities with technological means. SEC/ART/DAN/NIC
