International Literacy Day 2025: Nigeria’s literacy crisis in the ‘Age of Digitalisation’

On this year’s International Literacy Day (ILD), themed “Literacy as Freedom: Bridging the Digital Divide”, the world confronts a stark reality: over 770 million adults globally remain illiterate, and nearly two-thirds are women. In Nigeria, this global crisis has an acute local face. More than 10 million Nigerian children are out of school, one of the highest figures worldwide, according to UNICEF, and adult literacy hovers at around 62 percent. Despite being Africa’s largest economy, Nigeria risks creating a generation trapped in “double marginalisation”: excluded from traditional literacy opportunities and left behind by a rapidly digitalising world.

For decades, literacy has been Nigeria’s Achilles’ heel. Federal and state governments have consistently allocated less than 10 percent of annual budgets to education, far below UNESCO’s recommended 15–20 percent. This chronic underinvestment is most visible in northern states like Yobe and Zamfara, where literacy rates fall below 30 percent, compared to southern states like Lagos and Anambra, which exceed 80 percent. The North–South divide has deepened a literacy gap that mirrors broader socio-economic inequalities, including poverty, insecurity, and gender disparity. For Nigerian girls, especially in rural areas, the barriers are formidable: child marriage, cultural norms, and insecurity keep millions out of school, making Nigeria one of the top contributors to the global gender literacy gap.

Digitalisation was meant to be the great equaliser, but for many Nigerians, it has become another barrier. Broadband penetration sits at 43 percent, according to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), but this headline number hides severe inequity: rural connectivity is minimal, electricity remains unreliable, and over 70 percent of rural households lack internet access. In a country where more than 133 million people live in multidimensional poverty, expecting families to afford smartphones, data plans, or laptops is unrealistic. Without urgent intervention, Nigeria’s illiteracy crisis risks colliding with the digital divide to form a perfect storm of exclusion.

Reda also: International literacy day and public libraries

Yet, this is not the whole story. Nigeria’s youthful population, over 60 percent are under 25, offers enormous potential to reverse this trend. Across the country, youth-led edtech companies like uLesson, Gradely, and Edves are already creating low-cost digital solutions to literacy gaps. WhatsApp-based learning modules, radio classrooms, and solar-powered e-learning kiosks have emerged as innovative tools to reach underserved populations. These examples prove that Nigeria is not standing still. But innovation cannot thrive without deliberate policy alignment, infrastructure development, and investment in teachers.

The core issue is not a lack of ideas; it is a lack of political will. Nigeria has had several literacy initiatives, including the National Literacy Framework and the Better Education Service Delivery for All (BESDA) programme, but most are underfunded, poorly implemented, or fragmented across federal and state levels. For example, Nigeria’s National Broadband Plan 2020–2025 aims to achieve 70 percent broadband penetration by the end of this year, yet infrastructure rollout has been sluggish, particularly in rural regions where the literacy challenge is most severe. Without tackling foundational literacy first, the promise of digital literacy remains out of reach for millions.

This year’s ILD theme challenges governments to treat literacy not merely as a development goal but as a form of freedom. In Nigeria, illiteracy is both a symptom and a driver of systemic poverty, insecurity, and political disempowerment. Communities with the lowest literacy rates also suffer most from banditry, child labour, and voter manipulation. The literacy divide is not an abstract metric; it is a weapon of inequality that locks entire populations out of economic mobility and political participation.

To break this cycle, Nigeria must rethink literacy as a national emergency requiring coordinated action:

Massive investment in foundational literacy: Federal and state governments must meet or exceed UNESCO’s funding benchmark. Universal basic education cannot remain aspirational; it must become an enforceable policy with measurable outcomes.

Digital infrastructure for all: Closing the broadband gap is critical. Investment in rural internet access, renewable energy solutions, and community learning hubs can help bridge the digital divide. Kenya’s Konza Smart City and Rwanda’s One Laptop per Child initiative offer replicable models.

Read also: Digital literacy for all: NITDA targets 70% coverage by 2027

Gender-focused literacy campaigns: Any literacy strategy that ignores the barriers faced by women and girls will fail. Conditional cash transfers, safe school initiatives, and targeted outreach programmes must be scaled up.

Partnership with private and non-profit sectors: Nigeria’s growing edtech ecosystem shows that innovation can thrive when supported by enabling policies. Public-private partnerships should be leveraged to scale proven solutions like solar-powered e-learning centres and AI-driven literacy apps.

Nigeria’s literacy crisis is solvable, but it requires urgency. The country’s demographic advantage will become a demographic disaster if millions of young Nigerians remain uneducated and disconnected. As UNESCO reminds us this year, literacy is freedom, not just the ability to read and write, but the power to participate in society, access opportunities, and shape the future. For Nigeria, bridging the literacy and digital divides is not a luxury; it is the foundation of national survival.

International Literacy Day 2025 is a reminder that every child kept out of school and every adult excluded from literacy is a national failure. But it is also a call to action: with the right investments, Nigeria could lead Africa in turning its literacy challenge into a digital opportunity. The stakes are high, but so is the potential.