Education for Self-Reliance: An Imperative for National Development

Abstract

So many reasons have been given for why most Third World Nations continue to be on the periphery of national development. So many measures have also been suggested as ways of dealing with the problem of national development. This paper sees education as a potent instrument with which the problem of national development can be successfully dealt with. It advocates for a functional education for self reliance since this has the capacity of equipping the learner with a sort of knowledge peculiar to his or her existential circumstance and specific needs. Since it is the individuals in the society that form the foundation for self-reliance, education for self-reliance tackles the problem of national development from its roots when it addresses the individual’s well being.