Celebrating World Book and Copyright Day 2024

Oluwakemi Akinleye fsp – Vatican City.

Each year, a country is selected to be the World Book Capital and it is expected to carry out a series of activities to celebrate and promote books and reading. The first event was held in 1995 in Paris, France. In 2023, Accra, Ghana was the World Book Capital and in 2024 it is Strasbourg, France.

The 23rd of April was chosen as the day for this annual celebration because it is the date that famous authors such as William Shakespeare, Miguel de Cervantes and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega died but in the United Kingdom and Ireland, it is celebrated on the first Thursday of March as the 23rd of April, St George, is a National feast.

According to the UNESCO Director General, Ms. Audrey Azoulay, the World Book and Copyright Day is celebrated “with the active involvement of all stakeholders: authors, publishers, teachers, librarians, public and private institutions, humanitarian NGOs, the mass media, and all those who feel motivated to work together in this world celebration of books and authors.” This event honours authors and pays homage to all the professions associated with books, namely editing, translation, publishing and book selling. 

Ms. Azoulay encourages everyone to read a book daily, bearing in mind that “a book, whatever its format, is an essential means of education and source of knowledge. It is with books that we learn to read. And it is thanks to them that we keep ourselves informed, are entertained and are able to understand the world.”  

Will Africa’s reading culture always remain low?

It often comes spontaneously for many to say that the reading culture in Africa is very low. This is not without facts, though, as the long years of socio-economic crisis, poor educational infrastructure and lack of good reading materials in many African countries constitute part of the reasons why the continent’s population rank low in the reading culture.

Recent studies have shown that about 95% of books published in Africa are for the education sector, as compared to Europe which has a 60:40 ratio of textbooks to non-textbooks. This leaves African leisure readers with access to only 5% of books published for their use.

In the post Covid-19 pandemic, due to heavy financial constraints, many parents would rather pay for food, rent, fees and perhaps only the compulsory school books. Other reading materials, such as story books or novels, are placed either at the end of their shopping list or completely out of it. Yet the children who form the habit of reading for knowledge and self-improvement at an early age do have an increase in vocabulary in a short time and often perform better in school. 

Finding creative ways to encourage reading

In order to improve our reading culture in Africa, the change of mentality must begin in families. The digital age brings us many exciting and creative opportunites, and parents can harnesss them by providing good books, and integrating more reading times, for their children and for themselves. It is important to form the good habit of reading at least a page or two of a book daily and remember to add a book in the birthday, graduation or wedding gift pack.

As we celebrate the World Book and Copyright Day this year, let us join hands to promote literacy and access to books, especially for the underprivileged in society because “a book represents one of the most beautiful inventions for sharing ideas and embodies an effective tool for fighting poverty and building sustainable peace” (UNESCO).