Ogun Govt intensifies campaign to tackle illiteracy, out-of-school menace

In its bid to encourage mass literacy among the citizens and to tackle out of school challenges in Ogun State, the Governor Dapo Abiodun administration, through the Agency for Mass and Lifelong Education, has taken its campaign against illiteracy to market places and motor parks in the state.

The campaign was held at Remo North, Yewa North and Ijebu-East Local Government Areas of the state.

Speaking during the sensitisation drive, the director in the agency, Abosede Odulesi, encouraged people that had missed the opportunity of attending school to take the advantage of the free adult literacy and skills acquisition initiative of the government.

She urged them to enroll at the centre closer to their environment, saying textbooks and other writing materials would be available at no cost.

Odulesi asserted that education remained a powerful tool for personal and socio-economic development to achieve greatness in life, adding that people who could read and write would have their lives transformed.

She also disclosed that government had provided opportunities for different vocations, such as garment making, hair dressing, catering and hospitality, shoe making, cosmetology, and barbing, among others, for people who could be interested to learn one trade or the other.

“I want to encourage our adults and youths, especially people who are incapacitated to pay to learn a trade to maximise the opportunities of free Vocational and Skills training provided by the government and learn any trade of their choice,” Odulesi said.

Appreciating the government for upgrading their status from illiterate to being literates, Christianah Ogunleye and Olatunde Ajoke, of Ayetoro centre, as well as Jimoh Quadri of Itele centre, testified that before attending the adult school, they could not read or write but presently, they could read, write and speak publicly.

Also, a beneficiary of the initiative, Juliet Akinleye, confirmed that the training was free with adequate equipment supplied at no cost.