By LAIDE AKINBOADE

ABUJA – The Federal Government has raised alarm over threat to extinction of Nigeria indigenous languages.
Supervising Minister of Education, Barr. Nyesom Wike, noted this at the 2014 The United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture UNESCO, International Mother language Day, IMLD, in Abuja.

He said there is remarkable decline in the use of Nigerian languages, especially those living in urban centers hardly communicate in their mother tongues.

The theme for this year’s celebration was ‘local Languages for global citizenship: spotlight on science’.
According to him, “You will all agree with me that our indigenous languages are facing the threat of becoming extinct due to remarkable decline in usage. Our youths, especially those living in the urban centers hardly communicate in their mother tongues. Worse still is the sharp drop in the number of those that could read or write in those languages as a result of over dependence in the use of social media against the traditional letter writing.”

He noted, “I believe if we want to give our children the best possible chance to know our history, values and tradition as parents, we must ensure that every Nigerian child can read and write in his or her own language.
”This is not just another educational debate where the answer lies somewhere. It is a responsibility that begins at home. It is one that we need to take on before our kids step their feet into the classrooms and then carry through their teenage years”.

He stressed the commitment of the ministry in expanding access to quality education and reversing the negative trend of declining use of indigenous language through advocacy and sensitization campaigns.
He said the use of indigenous language can be used to settle conflicts and promotes peaceful coexistence among  various ethnic groups.

He said it is therefore imperative for the nation to fast track the process of developing the nation’s  indigenous languages  and urged all Nigerian students to be proud of the cultural heritage and be prepared to defend it at any fora.