Adolescents’ Educational Well-Being as a Prerequisite for National Development in Nigeria

Abstract

The paper emphasized adolescents’ educational well-being as a prerequisite for national development in Nigeria. When the Nigerian civil war ended in January 1970, the federal government articulated the five main national development goals of building a free and democratic society:- a just and egalitarian society; a united, strong and self-reliant nation; a great and dynamic economy; and a land full of bright opportunities for all citizens, as contained in the Second National Development Plan (1970-1974) and endorsed in 1973 as the necessary foundation for the National Policy on Education, which was first published in 1977. After 41years, this dream is far from being realized. There is injustice and insecurity, with lots of human right abuses and extra judicial killings, banditry, herders attack, high crime rates, the grave menace of cultism, ritual murder, child abuse, religious riots, unemployment, corruption, and other vices inimical to the national development. The paper stressed the importance of adolescents’ educational well-being as a strategy for achieving national development in Nigeria. Therefore, it was recommended that the federal government provide quality educational opportunities that will reduce youths’ illiteracy for the well-being of the adolescents, enhancing Nigeria’s national development.