NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT - TO WHICH SHOULD A COUNTRY GIVE PRIORITY: INDUSTRY, HEALTH, EDUCATION OR DEFENCE

 NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT - TO WHICH SHOULD A COUNTRY GIVE PRIORITY: INDUSTRY, HEALTH, EDUCATION, OR DEFENCE?

Written by Mbibi Longinus Chinagorom(PAA)/09124601622

The aspects of national development which different countries see and put on priority lists vary from country to country. But there is scarcely any well-meaning and wise nation that can fail to give adequate and priority attention to education, health, industry and defence. After reaching a certain stage of development however, the order of intensity of attention devoted to some aspects of national development policies may alter. But for any meaningful take-off at all the above mentioned items are indispensable and be in that order.

Thus without education in all its ramifications a nation is doomed to perpetual backwardness and its inhabitants to sub-human existence. It is like groping in the dark with regards to their aims and aspirations. What does the education essential for national progress consist in? These can be broadly grouped into four categories namely: mass literacy, whereby all and sundry in a nation will be civilized in their behaviours, in their eatings, and drinking in their religion, dress, can enrich their knowledge of the world through reading and facilitate their contacts by writing and travelling.

The second type of education is also general; advanced but literary education for the administrators, writers and policy makers the whose wide reading and experience can be put at the guide of policy making.

Thirdly, the nation has gotten to have the professionals-economists, accountants, journalists, engineers, doctors and architects to mention only a few.

Last but not the least comes the education for science and technology. Any nation that lacks this type of education is definitely not living in the modern age. The importance of the type of education cannot over-emphasized. The world's industry is rapidly being machanised; human labour is fast becoming inadequate and wasteful.

In modern times transport and human porterage have been replaced not only by motors but by jet air liners. Communications - radio, telephone, cables here replace the primitive human errands. Agriculture - deserts have been turned into fertile lands, crops quantity and quality as well as animal breeding have thrust to mankind sources of wealth never dreamt of about one hundred years ago. In fact the manners and forms in which science and technology have revolutionized and is revolutionising the lives of human beings cannot be exhaustively treated in essay of this standard.

When a reasonable standard of education is achieved, most of the problems of health in the nation are easily solved. Thus education and health can be lumped together.

If a nation is blessed with educated and healthy citizens the question of industrialization is a matter of course. A wise saying goes "knowledge is power and health is wealth." Without a reasonably adequate level of education, efforts at industrialization will be misdirected and wastes blunders will result. 

Without good health the personnel at the industries will be lacking and out put will be affected adversely. But when through education a reasonable level of decent and and hygienic manners have been inculcated then industrialization can follow by which both the nation and its citizens will have more money to elaborate upon more health projects to the extent of providing nearly every twenty or fifteen citizens with a doctor.

With education, health and industry achieved in a nation, economic and political maturity attained, such a nation comes into international limelight; and it is not unusual that every of and rivalry from other less fortunate or ambitious nations will result. This is true of human nature for all ages.

 Hence the need for defence against internal disorder and foreign aggression. The greater the economic prosperity and political advancement the larger the investment such a nation put into defence, otherwise America and the U.S.S.R are not unapprehended and envied by other nations; but which nation dares show hostility openly to curb the unprecedented and continuous growth of these nations. These powers are now giving more attention to defence but they started with education, health, and then industrialization. Thus they become mighty and for this hard-worn power and wealth not to be snatched, they must defend their nations.