7000 languages face extinction: UNESCO

CAIRO – 22 February 2019: In conjunction with the International Mother Language Day, The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), has warned that nearly 7000 languages around the world are facing the risk of extinction.

On its Facebook official page, Cairo’s UN mission stated that UNESCO believes in the importance of cultural and linguistic diversity for sustainable societies. It noted that the idea to celebrate International Mother Language Day was the initiative of Bangladesh.

“It was approved at the 1999 UNESCO General Conference and has been observed throughout the world since 2000,” UN stated, adding that linguistic diversity is increasingly threatened as more and more languages disappear.

“Globally, 40 per cent of the population does not have access to education in the language they speak or understand. Nevertheless, progress is being made in mother tongue-based multilingual education with growing understanding of its importance, particularly in early schooling, and more commitment to its development in public life. Multilingual and multicultural societies exist through their languages which transmit and preserve traditional knowledge and cultures in a sustainable way,” UN added.