Academy blasts NCE for scrapping mother-tongue education policy

By Kunle Sanni –

The Nigerian Academy of Letters (NAL) has criticised the decision by the National Council on Education (NCE) to cancel the National Language Policy (NLP 2022) and adopt English as the sole medium of instruction in Nigerian schools, warning that the move threatens the country’s linguistic and cultural future.

The reversal was announced at the 69th NCE meeting held in Akure from November 3 to 6. The policy had mandated mother-tongue instruction for the first six years of schooling, a model supported by decades of research and international best practices.

In a statement on Friday by NAL President, Andrew Haruna, the abrupt cancellation ignores expert evidence and undermines four decades of incremental policy development in favour of multilingual education.

The academy described the decision as “deeply concerning” and “scornful of Nigerians,” noting that the 2022 policy was produced through nationwide consultation, rigorous academic research and extensive stakeholder engagement.

NAL urged the Federal Government to immediately reinstate the National Language Policy (2022) and retain Nigerian languages in the national curriculum. It called for investment in teacher training, curriculum development and learning materials in indigenous languages.

The body also encouraged civil society, NGOs, academics and the media to advocate for linguistic rights and raise public awareness, while calling on international partners to support Nigeria’s alignment with UNESCO’s multilingual education standards.

“Silence is not an option,” the academy said. “Protecting our languages is a national responsibility and a moral obligation to future generations.”

“It is ironic that while Ghana and other African countries are embracing multilingual education, Nigeria is reversing a policy that it has not even implemented,” the academy said.

NAL warned that the policy reversal carries far-reaching consequences, including the erosion of linguistic diversity, threats to national cohesion, exclusion of minority-language speakers, and a return to “colonial-era linguistic domination.”

The academy questioned the rationale for the reversal, saying the Ministry of Education appears unaware that a full implementation framework for the 2022 policy already exists.