A/HRC/28/64/Add.2 of parents. They also emphasized the importance and significance of keeping at least these three native Nigerian languages mandatory alongside English. 71. Representatives of the Ministry of Culture acknowledged they were in favour of the introduction of some criteria to teach local languages in schools and highlighted the importance of preserving minority languages as part of the cultural heritage of the peoples. As one of the representatives asserted, “once the language dies, the culture dies”. 72. Article 4, paragraph 3, of the 1992 Declaration on Minorities calls on States to take appropriate measures so that, wherever possible, persons belonging to minorities may have adequate opportunities to learn their mother tongue or to have instruction in their mother tongue. In its position paper on education in a multilingual world, 16 UNESCO asserts that mother-tongue instruction is highly beneficial in terms of school performance; it allows students learn to read more quickly and to learn to read in a second language more quickly, and students taught to read in their mother tongue also acquire academic learning skills more quickly. 73. The Special Rapporteur welcomed the programme implemented by the Ministry of Culture, currently in its second phase, to safeguard endangered languages, as well as the existence of the National Institute for Nigerian Languages, a specialized body in the Ministry of Education in charge of languages, a main objective of which is the promotion of “the study and use of Nigerian languages”. IX. Conclusions and recommendations 74. The history and configuration of present-day Nigeria is inextricably linked to the existence of hundreds of ethnic groups and languages. For the most part, Nigeria has managed to achieve a relatively peaceful and harmonious coexistence among the different groups. However, such diversity also poses important challenges to manage and appropriately address intercommunal and minority issues and to foster the conditions to ensure continued peaceful coexistence. While the principle of equality and non-discrimination is recognized in the Constitution, in order to implement adequate measures to guarantee equality and minority rights it is necessary to know in depth the composition of all groups within the country and understand the inequalities, challenges and issues that exist. Indigenes/settlers dichotomy 75. The Special Rapporteur considers the distinction between indigenes and settlers to be potentially damaging to intergroup relations and peaceful coexistence. It has opened and reinforced ethnic and religious cleavages and contributed to tensions and conflict. Some groups regard indigene status as a safeguard of their rights in the light of the growing numbers, influence and economic dominance of other groups, while others consider it a breach of the right to equality and non-discrimination. If this distinction is maintained, further legal clarity will be required to regulate the indigeneship status and guarantee that no person is unfairly discriminated against or excluded from access to services and resources, land or the right to participate fully in the economic, social, cultural and political life. 16 Available from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001297/129728e.pdf. 17