Museveni blames Government failures on illiteracy
Aug 18, 2003
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has blamed failure of government programmes on the high illiteracy rate in the country.
By John Eremu and Edris Kisambira
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has blamed failure of government programmes on the high illiteracy rate in the country.
The President told the Third Pan African Conference on Reading which opened in Kampala yesterday that an illiterate population could not monitor the implementation of government programmes and guard against corruption.
“When our programmes fail most people blame it on corruption. But literacy empowers people to monitor. So when our programmes fail we should blame illiteracy as well,†Museveni said in a speech read by the Minister for the Presidency, Kirunda Kivejinja. He challenged parents to put in place budgets for acquisition of books to promote the reading culture.
“Literate non-readers will plead there is no money for buying books yet they find money for booze,†Museveni said.
The five-day conference has drawn over 600 delegates from 20 countries. It was addressed by education minister Khiddu Makubuya, the UNESCO assistant director general Dr. Winsome Gordon and publisher James Tumusiime.
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has blamed failure of government programmes on the high illiteracy rate in the country.
The President told the Third Pan African Conference on Reading which opened in Kampala yesterday that an illiterate population could not monitor the implementation of government programmes and guard against corruption.
“When our programmes fail most people blame it on corruption. But literacy empowers people to monitor. So when our programmes fail we should blame illiteracy as well,†Museveni said in a speech read by the Minister for the Presidency, Kirunda Kivejinja. He challenged parents to put in place budgets for acquisition of books to promote the reading culture.
“Literate non-readers will plead there is no money for buying books yet they find money for booze,†Museveni said.
The five-day conference has drawn over 600 delegates from 20 countries. It was addressed by education minister Khiddu Makubuya, the UNESCO assistant director general Dr. Winsome Gordon and publisher James Tumusiime.