A/HRC/28/64/Add.2 Linguistic rights 98. The linguistic diversity in Nigeria includes hundreds of languages. However, many of them are seriously endangered and some have become extinct. The Special Rapporteur recognizes the considerable efforts of the Government to safeguard endangered languages and encourages it to continue and intensify its efforts to preserve Nigeria’s rich language heritage. 99. The multiplicity of minority languages poses challenges to the feasibility of mother-tongue instruction. The Special Rapporteur recalls the 1992 Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities, under which States are required to take appropriate measures to provide mother-tongue language education or instruction wherever possible. The Government should make available adequate funding and take practical steps, including provision of teaching materials to assist teaching of and instruction in minority languages in public schools. Where numerous languages exist in a locality, the Government should consider formal and informal methodologies and programmes based on local language traditions, needs and requirements. 100. Among the difficulties faced by speakers of minority languages is the scarce presence of minority languages in public and private media. Media can play a significant role in the promotion and preservation of minority endangered languages and consequently the preservation of minority cultures and identities. The allocation of specific spaces for local languages on television channels and radio programmes, as well as in the written press, should be encouraged and supported. Education 101. The Government must take appropriate actions to ensure that all children, regardless their social status, have access to compulsory education. Special measures should be adopted to combat school dropouts, including those owing to poverty and socioeconomic factors, and ensure school attendance of children belonging to minorities, particularly minority girls, including assessments of the situation of minority children, increased provision of minority-language education, increase funding for education and collaboration with state and local governments and civil society organizations. 102. A specific subject on citizenship education should be introduced in the school curriculum to provide students with the fundamentals of human rights, political institutions and the rule of law. Knowledge of the diversity of Nigeria, including the history of its diverse ethnic, religious and linguistic groups and communities and their important contribution to enriching Nigeria’s culture, society and unity, should also be an integral part of the national education programmes. 22