Linguist Josiah Egbilika, an advocate for indigenous languages, has urged the federal and state governments to address the issue of indigenous language development as a national priority. Linguist Egbilika bemoaned the ongoing disregard for language development in state and federal budgets.
He asserts that without funding, Nigeria’s roughly 527 languages could never be fully developed and accurately documented.
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Linguist Egbilika lamented that the development of indigenous languages in Nigeria was not included in the Twenty-Eight Point twenty-eight-seven trillion Naira (N28.7 trillion) budget passed by the President Tinubu-led administration.
The primary cause of this ongoing neglect is that successive governments have failed to recognize the importance of making language development a national priority.
”Regretfully, it is concerning how quickly Nigerian languages are disappearing” he said.
The Linguist claims that unless grave and immediate action is taken, every language in Nigeria faces extinction.
He made the point that the country would lose all of its cultural legacies and the uniqueness that makes Nigeria distinct if our languages became extinct.
”To preserve culture and the people they have pledged to govern, he urged the Federal and State Governments to see the development of indigenous languages as an imperative” he said
