International Literacy Day

The International Literacy Day is celebrated on 8^th September every year throughout the world.  On this day, in the year 1965 the World Congress of Ministers of Education met in Tehran for the first time to discuss the programme of education at the international level.  The UNESCO in its 14^th Session in November, 1966, declared 8^th September as the International Literacy Day. Since then, ILD is celebrated on 8^th September every year by most of the member countries.

Objectives

The key aspect of the observance of ILD is to mobilize public opinion in favour of struggle against illiteracy. ILD is a forum to disseminate information on literacy and raise the public awareness and the significance of literacy for individual and national development. It is an occasion to mark achievements and reflect on ways to counter remaining challenges for the promotion of literacy as an integral part of lifelong learning within and beyond the 2030 Education Agenda.

International Literacy Day (ILD) 2024

The overarching theme of ILD 2024 is "Promoting Literacy through Multilingualism".

Literacy is a foundation for people to acquire broader knowledge, skills, values, attitudes, and behaviours to foster a culture of lasting peace based on respect for equality and non-discrimination, the rule of law, solidarity, justice, diversity, and tolerance and to build harmonious relations with oneself, other people and the planet. In 2022, however, at least one out of seven adults aged 15 and above (754 million) lacked basic literacy skills. Additionally, millions of children are struggling to acquire minimum levels of proficiency in reading, writing and numeracy, while some 250 million children of 6-18 years old are out of school. 

There is a pressing need to harness the transformative potential of literacy for promoting mutual understanding, social cohesion, and peace. In today’s world, in which multilingualism is a common practice for many, empowering people by adopting a first language-based, multilingual approach to literacy development and education is particularly effective for its cognitive, pedagogical, and socio-economic benefits. Such an approach can help promote mutual understanding and respect, while solidifying communal identities and collective histories.

ILD2024 will unpack issues related to literacy in multilingual contexts for achieving lasting peace and will explore possible solutions for enhancing policies, lifelong learning systems, governance, programmes, and practices. ILD2024 will be celebrated in-person and online at the global, regional, national, and local levels. 

Source : UNESCO

Related resources

1. Education 2030: Incheon Declaration and Framework for Action (2015)
2. Sustainable Development Goal 4 and its targets.