Yemen to celebrate Arab Literacy Day, with 65 % increase in illiteracy rate

SANAA, Jan. 10 (YPA) – Yemen is to celebrate on Monday the Arab Literacy Day, which falls on the 11th of January of every year, in light of the increase in the illiteracy rate to 65 percent compared to 45 percent before the Saudi-led aggression.

In a statement to the Yemeni News Agency (Saba), Head of the Literacy and Adult Education Organization, Fouad Al-Shami, attributed this increase in the illiteracy rate to the continuation of the Saudi-led coalition’s aggression, its unfair siege for the sixth year in a row, and its direct and systematic targeting of the educational process and its infrastructure.

Al-Shami indicated that the aggression coalition, over the past six years, has caused the destruction of thousands of schools, and displacement of thousands of families due to deteriorating economic conditions and an increase in poverty.

“All of these factors contributed to the high rate of school dropout and child labor, as a result of the deterioration of the living conditions,” he explained.

He pointed to the risks of the high rate of illiteracy on the country’s future and its negative repercussions in hindering the wheel of development.

Al-Shami stressed the importance of concerting and mobilizing official and popular efforts to effectively contribute to reducing illiteracy, and supporting and encouraging voluntary initiatives in order to reduce illiteracy and achieve sustainable development.

He referred to the Organization’s strenuous efforts to raise the number of students during this year to 350,000 male and female students, despite the scarcity of capabilities, indicating that the organization seeks to reach one million male and female students by 2023.

YPA