Lord Alton of Liverpool has commended Nigeria for leading Africa’s literacy reforms, describing the country’s adoption of evidence-based reading instruction through the Jolly Phonics approach as a model worthy of global recognition.
He spoke at a two-day international forum in London hosted at the House of Lords, UK Parliament marking the 20th Anniversary of the Jolly Phonics Programme, organised by Universal Learning Solutions (ULS). The event opened at the House of Lords under the theme “England’s Reading Revolution Goes Global: How Nigeria is Leading Literacy Reform Across Africa,” and continued at Stationers’ Hall under the theme “20 Years of Impact in Transforming Literacy in Nigeria and Beyond.”
Both sessions drew members of the House of Lords, members of Parliament, education policymakers, literacy experts, and a Nigerian delegation.
ALSO READ: FUTO VC vows to sustain growth, development of institution
The Executive Chairman of the Benue State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Dr. Grace Adagba, was the featured speaker at Stationers’ Hall, where she presented a paper titled “Driving Educational Excellence Through Foundational Literacy: The Benue State Jolly Phonics Experience.”
The evidence showcased Benue State’s gains in foundational literacy, noting that Benue came top in the 2025 Phonics Screening Exercise Results in Word Reading Test (WRT) under the administration of His Excellency, Rev. Fr. Dr. Hyacinth Iormem Alia, as implemented by SUBEB.
Adagba highlighted Benue’s improvement in Word Reading and Letter Tests performance from a mean of 0.4% in 2019 and 8.1% in 2021 to over 72% percent in 2025, attributing these successes to Gov. Alia’s strategic investment in teacher professional development and school interventions.
The forum also featured Sir Nick Gibb, UK’s Former Minister of Schools; Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, Professor Pauline Dixon, Dr. Steve Humble MBE both of University of Newcastle; Chris Jolly, CEO/Founder of UK’s Jolly Learning Ltd; Gary Foxcroft, CEO/Founder of Universal Learning Solutions, and many others who spoke on Nigeria’s literacy reforms and the growing reach of Jolly Phonics across Africa.
WATCH TOP VIDEOS FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE TV