Education officials have said that non-formal education has proved to an effective tool for combating illiteracy. Speaking at an interaction program organized by the Education Journalists Group (EJG) in Kathmandu Wednesday, director of non-formal Education Centre, Haribol Khanal said, "Non-formal education has proved to be an effective tool for awareness and has at the same time helped reduce illiteracy."
The allegations that non-formal education has not been successful are unjustified, he added. Khanal informed that under the village education plan household surveys would be conducted in 600 VDCs of 30 districts around the country in order to figure out the number of literate and illiterate people [in households], the level of their education. "This will also help us determine what sort of education is needed for them¡±. Rs.270 million rupees will be invested for non-formal education this year. Educationist Dr Susan Acharaya said, ¡±There is lack of conceptual clarity among people. Non-formal education is wrongly perceived as an education for only the elderly people. It can be a form of flexible schooling or alternative schooling for all those children and adults who cannot go to schools for formal education¡±.He opined that the existing method of examination should be changed into a performance-based evaluation system.