Journal of the International Association of Language Educators, Vol. 2, 2021 86 THE NATIONAL LANGUAGE POLICY: A THREAT TO NATIONAL UNITY Kehinde Olufemi OGUNYEMI, Ph.D ORCID ID: 0000-0003-1934-3292 Department of Arts Education, Adekunle Ajasin University, PMB 001, Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State, Nigeria. kehinde.ogunyemi@aaua.edu.ng & Oladotun Opeoluwa OLAGBAJU, Ph.D ORCID ID: 0000-0003-0912-9199 Department of Arts & Sciences, University of The Gambia, Brikama, The Gambia. oolagbaju@utg.edu.gm Abstract This paper is a critical review of the 2013 edition of the National Policy on Education (NPE). Specifically, the study focuses on the language policy as contained in the NPE and the dangers it poses to national integration. Since the amalgamation of the northern and the southern protectorates and the Lagos colony in 1914, successive Nigerian governments have prioritized the issue of national unity, national cohesion and peaceful coexistence of the over 350 ethnic groups in Nigeria. Despite the fact that the importance of language as a veritable tool in promoting national unity is recognized in the earlier editions of the NPE, the 2013 edition contains some changes which may pose serious threats to national unity. Such changes include the removal of the section 1, subsection 10a of the 2004 policy, removal of the official recognition given to Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba as national languages, the use of the language of the environment as medium of instruction in lower primary schools only in monolingual communities, removal of the study of one Nigerian language other than the language of the immediate community at the junior secondary school, and making the study of one Nigerian language optional at the senior secondary school. The paper argues that the changes above may lead to national disintegration if not urgently addressed. Since several studies have shown that the earlier editions of the policy were not implemented, the paper suggests that rather than trying to jettison the earlier versions of the policy; the government should ensure the full implementation of the 2004 edition of the language policy. Keywords: Ethnicity, National cohesion, National integration, National unity, NPE Introduction It is a well-known fact that Nigeria is not just the most populous nation on the African continent, but also a country where hundreds of indigenous languages compete for relevance and inclusiveness in national discourse. Although the exact number of indigenous languages in Nigeria is not known due to poor record keeping culture, scholars have agreed that we have over three hundred languages in the country. For instance, Ogunyemi and Bada (2020) estimate the number of indigenous languages in Nigeria to be over four hundred languages while Oyetayo (2006) puts it at over five hundred languages. The multilingual and multiethnic nature