By John Ambali, contributor:
2018 report by the National Statistical Office (NSO) indicates that the adult literacy rate in Malawi is at 68.6 percent.
This means that almost 31 out of 100 adult men and women cannot read and write. This is an increase in literacy levels as Unesco Institute for Statistics reported that adult literacy rate was at 64 percent in 2005 and 65 percent in 2016.
However, the increase is at a snail’s pace. Illiteracy is still high among females as compared to males. The NSO (2018) report shows that 34.1 percent of females are illiterate while 28.4 percent of males are illiterate.
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There has been a slow increase in adult literacy rates in Malawi. This trend summarily indicates that Malawi is at a critical juncture which requires swift and strategic interventions to combat illiteracy.
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Providing literacy education to adults remains one of the most important interventions that Malawi government embarked on.
The programme is run under the Ministry of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare.
It involves teaching the illiterate masses how to read, write as well as possess some numerical competences.
Currently, there are over 10,000 literacy classes across the country serving over 150,000 learners.
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The classes are managed by the Department of Community Development under the Ministry of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare.
Development partners such as DVV International, Malawi National Commission for Unesco, BuildOn Malawi and others also support literacy centres in some districts. It should be stated that most centres are largely patronised by women.
The importance of adult literacy cannot be overemphasised. The literates appreciate the importance of increased involvement in public life.
They easily participate in community development work. In addition, there is increased participation in political life as they are more likely to participate in polls and express tolerant views.
Adult learning gives individuals the chance to gain new skills and expand their knowledge base. Learning how to read and write alone does not captivate the interests of adult learners.
There is a need to make the programme more attractive so that more men and women can join it. One way of enriching and making adult learning and education (ALE) programme more attractive is to incorporate skills development.
It should be understood that adult learners are self-motivated and self-directed. They invest their energy in learning if whatever they are learning will yield immediate benefits.
They respond better to a training programme in which they will gain relevant skills and knowledge that they can use and apply in their daily tasks.
There is a need to promote technical and vocational skills in adult literacy centres. Adult learners need to be imparted with skills in carpentry, bricklaying and others.
They can also be trained in tailoring. After completion, they will use these skills to venture into self-employment. This can also help to reduce poverty levels among the rural masses as they will be able to participate in the informal sector.
Organisations such as DVV International have already started implementing this type of approach, where they are combining services from functional literacy and vocational and business skills in some community learning centres in Dowa and Ntchisi. This is commendable and needs to be adopted in other literacy centres.
Another area worth incorporating in ALE in Malawi is that of agro-food processing and value addition. The majority of the country’s population relies on agriculture for their livelihoods.
Adult learners can be taught modern methods of farming so as to improve production. At the same time, they can be trained to process locally available agricultural products such as tomatoes, pumpkins and fruits into equally valuable products such as jam and juice.
Hoverer, for this to be realised, it requires a reform in ALE curriculum to include skills that can give such adults further opportunities in their lives.
There is need for the responsible ministry in collaboration with other stakeholders to develop the curriculum that can incorporate the concept of skills development as the current curriculum is devoid of this element.
In addition, there is need to work hand in hand with the Technical, Entrepreneurial and Vocational Education and Training Authority (Teveta) which promotes the adoption of appropriate technologies to enhance effectiveness and efficiency in various informal skills development initiatives.
Teveta has skills development initiatives programmes which are aimed at imparting or improving skills to small and micro entrepreneurs as well as out-of-school youth, women and other community members. The collaboration will help in providing relevant training which can suit adult learners.
Furthermore, it is important for the Ministry of Gender to partner with more organisations and development partners to help in implementing skills development initiatives in adult literacy centres.
The ones that are already implementing this approach can also provide insights for others to learn from.
In the absence of the reformed curriculum, there is need to develop standardised guidelines in order to avoid disparities and inconsistencies during implementation of the skills development initiatives.
The skill development initiatives in ALE cannot be a success without the involvement of instructors of adult learners, community development workers and other extension workers.
These too need to be provided with relevant training so that their skills in the approach are enhanced.
Institutions of higher learning such as Magomero Community Development College and the Catholic University of Malawi can also help in developing the capacity of extension workers in skills development.
Adult literacy goes beyond the ability to read and write.
Blending adult literacy and skills development can make ALE programme become more attractive, at the same time help to improve the community economy.
