Bangladesh unlikely to achieve target
The dropped out children remain outreached, as they are not given 'second chance for education' by any government programme, they added.
They were speaking at the press briefing on 'Attaining Mass Literacy: Background and Necessity' organised by Campaign for Popular Education (Campe) at the National Press Club in the city.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Speakers also said as the government does not have any national policy for their education, donors too are reluctant to fund any project on mass literacy programme.
With no support from the government and the donors as well, the few non-government organisations that are working on mass literacy are performing poorly, said Kazi Rafiqul Alam, chief executive of Dhaka Ahsania Mission (DAM).
Prof Ahmadullah Mia of the same organisation underscored the need for an integrated approach for effective primary education, launching non-formal fundamental education for the adolescent as 'second chance', and demand driven literacy programme for the youth and adults.
Quoting a joint study of Unesco, Dhaka and DAM, he said we have attained only three per cent growth in adult literacy in the last three years with an annual growth rate of 1.2 per cent.
So it is unlikely that we will be able to achieve the target of 'Education for All' by 2015, he added.
Citing discrepancies in different data on the literacy rate, Campe Director Rasheda K Choudhury said we need accurate statistics at our disposal if we want to effectively combat illiteracy.
Prof Muhammad Ibrahim of Dhaka University said marginalised sections of the society had always remained off the mainstream education and that is why deliberate government intervention is a must to equip them with necessary life-skills.