Research done by Twaweza, a Non-Governmental Organisation, has shown that despite the effort from various fronts and the political will to increase access to learning opportunities in Kenya, some children and adults still struggle with basic literacy skills.
The research findings reveal that nationally, 45 percent of mothers cannot read a class two English story.
Speaking on Thursday, during the marking of the 50th anniversary of the World Literacy Day, Dr John Mugo, Director of Data and Voice at Twaweza, said 90 percent of mothers in the North Eastern region (twice the national average) cannot read a Standard two level story compared with less than 30 percent of mothers in the Central region.
In addition, a child in the Central region is over seven times more likely to solve a Class two literacy problem than his/her counterpart in the North Eastern region.
According to Dr Mugo, the findings show that the level of education of a mother is significant in literacy acquisition of the child.
“As we celebrate the World Literacy Day, we need to be conscious of the millions of Kenyans who cannot even read or write an SMS. The situation is serious and pretty humiliating, especially for mothers and young people in marginalised areas. To save the generations, it is important we do everything possible to ensure that every child completing standard 8 in Kenya has acquired sustainable literacy skills to push them through life,” said Dr Mugo.
“In achieving this, we will not achieve different results by doing more of the same, but through commitment to ensure that children left
behind are taught at their level so that they may catch up,” he added.
Dr Mugo said the low literacy levels calls for attention as literacy acquisition is the cornerstone of an individual progress, achieving a cohesive and an equitable society.
“Having a huge proportion of children and mothers with low levels of literacy especially those from arid and semi-arid counties should concern
all of us, as such further aggravates the inequality gap. Overcoming the 21st century challenges such as insecurity will require a literate populace,” said Dr Mugo.
The 2016 Global Education Monitoring Report launched in September (undertaken in 106 countries) shows that, people with lower levels of education are more likely to engage in violence.
He said literacy plays a central role in the achievement of Vision 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“Sustainable Development Goal 4 aims to 'ensure inclusive and equitable quality
education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.' Kenya’s Vision 2030 and SDG deadline coincide and this calls for more concerted effort to eradicate illiteracy, otherwise we risk missing the two deadlines,” he said.
On his part, Dr Emmanuel Manyasa, Manager of Uwezo Kenya at Twaweza said, “Kenya’s development trajectory that is Vision 2030 will only be achieved if we urgently focus our energies on ensuring that a significant proportion of children and adults access education opportunities.
Manyasa said a literate society will stimulate economic growth of the country.