Adult education as a blueprint to development in the 21st century: an African perspective

Abstract

This paper examines the role of adult education in development in the 21st century in the notion that the two terms are intrinsically related. Studies on adult education and development have revealed thateducation develops a balanced individual capable of surviving in his environment and contributing meaningfully towards the survival of that society to which he belongs. Adult education here includes but also goes beyond the notion of imparting knowledge and skills to adult men and women for day - to – day surv ival, to include a transformative process that enables them to respond to their environment in proactive manner.The focus of this paper is adult education and development while taking into account factors that hamper adult education in Africa emanating fro m policy, quality, relevance and access among others. It concludes that adult educationis a highway to development of any country. Challenges to adult education should be critically addressed for development in the 21st century.