The Nigerian Academy of Letters (NAL) has sharply criticised the Federal Government’s decision to scrap the National Language Policy (NLP 2022) and revert to English as the exclusive medium of instruction across all tiers of education, describing the move as a grave setback for the nation’s linguistic and cultural development.
In a strongly worded statement issued on Friday and signed by its President, Prof. Andrew Haruna, the academy warned that the reversal not only undermines decades of research-driven advocacy but also threatens the survival of indigenous languages and the cultural identity they embody.
Prof. Haruna noted that the National Language Policy, approved after more than 40 years of incremental decisions by the National Council on Education, was designed to promote mother-tongue-based multilingual education.
It emphasised the use of children’s first languages or languages of their immediate environment during the foundational years of schooling.
“The 2022 policy provided a progressive framework to give Nigerian children access to early learning in a language they understand. Dismissing it without due consultation or respect for expert opinion is disrespectful to Nigerians and disregards the evidence that supports mother-tongue instruction”, the statement read.
According to NAL, international research, including UNESCO recommendations, consistently shows that children learn better and faster when taught in their first language.
The academy referenced successful multilingual education models in countries such as Bolivia and Ghana, where mother-tongue instruction has boosted literacy rates and cognitive development.
NAL warned that cancelling the policy would erase decades of modest gains in promoting indigenous languages and further endanger Nigeria’s linguistic diversity.
The academy stressed that the decision could deepen educational inequality, weaken national cohesion, and sever young learners from their cultural roots.
“A nation that deprives its children of education in their mother tongue denies them access to their most authentic sources of knowledge and understanding,” Prof. Haruna asserted.
The academy urged the Federal Government to immediately reinstate the NLP 2022, maintain Nigerian languages within the national curriculum, and invest in teacher training as well as the production of learning materials in indigenous languages.
NAL also called on civil society organisations, NGOs, and cultural bodies to intensify advocacy for linguistic rights and mobilise public pressure to ensure the government remains accountable to its educational and cultural responsibilities.
