Federal Executive Council, on Wednesday, approved the adoption of the use of the mother tongue as a compulsory medium of instruction in primary schools throughout the country.
Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, announced this while addressing State House Correspondents after the week’s Council meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Adamu, who conceded that government is aware that implementation will be difficult, also revealed that the mother tongue will be used exclusively for the first six years of education while it will be combined with the English language from Junior Secondary School.
The Minister said though the policy has officially taken effect, it can only be fully implemented when government develops instructional materials and qualified teachers are available.
He explained that the mother tongue to be used in each school will be the dominant language spoken by the community where it is located.
Adamu said the government is intent on preserving cultures and their peculiar idiosyncrasies, lamenting that so much has been lost due to the extinction of some local languages.
He assured that all Nigerian languages will be treated equally.