Director-General of UNESCO
Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said that the country is ready to host the 2022 Global Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Week being organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). It is scheduled to take place in Abuja from October 24 to 31, 2022.
The Minister gave the assurance in Barcelona, Spain, while delivering a speech at the opening session of the Media and Information Literacy Series of the 3rd World Higher Education Conference on May 13, 2022.
Alhaji Mohammed who participated at the Conference virtually, said: “I pledge the commitment of the Federal Republic of Nigeria toward hosting a successful conference, and I solicit the support of UNESCO and partners, as well as governments and the organized private sector, in order to ensure a successful hosting.”
The Minister commended UNESCO for the good job it is doing in advancing and promoting the knowledge of Media and Information Literacy (MIL) in the world, saying: ”Evidently, the use of MIL in strengthening democracy and good governance, as well as creating a more stable and informed society, cannot be over-emphasized.”
He described the conference, which seeks to draw the attention of stakeholders to the relevance of establishing the International Media and Information Literacy Institute, as a significant milestone in the efforts of UNESCO and its partners, the members of the UNESCO-UNAOC Media and Information Literacy and Intercultural Dialogue University Network, to entrench MIL as a field of study.
He stated that Nigeria identifies with UNESCO’s efforts in this regard and has in fact laid the foundation for the progress being recorded. He recalled that Nigeria had in 2013 successfully hosted the first Global Forum for Partnership on MIL in Abuja. He added that the event, which was tagged Abuja 2013, gave rise to the creation of UNESCO MIL Alliance and other initiatives on the importance of MIL for all and by all.
The Minister used the occasion of the conference to announce that Nigeria is exploring the possibility of establishing a UNESCO International Media and Information Literacy Institute, in view of the importance that Nigeria places on Media and Information Literacy.
