Library usage globally is declining and in Africa, the situation is even worse says an educationist, David Sambo. According to him, even in advanced countries such as the United States of America (USA), recent statistics showed that library patronage had declined to about 30 percent whereas developing countries including Ghana have no significant data to report on.
Coupled with this, the educationist added, is the negativity that technology and other ICT devices such as the mobile phone and internet are being used for pornography and fraud whereas there were better opportunities to be derived from technology.
Mr. Sambo said this in Tamale at the launch of home literacy project (HLP) which is an initiative of World Readers and Vivo Energy in conjunction with the Ghana Library Authority.
The community digital literacy project seeks to provide literacy through technology. Mr. Sambo, however, welcomed the position of the collaborators saying the digital literacy project would help reverse the situation.
Managing Director of Vivo Energy Ghana, Ben Hassan Ouattara in an address read for him by Ms. Shirley Tony Kum, corporate communications manager at Vivo Energy said as a business they remain committed to transforming lives and making sustainable impacts in areas where they operated.
“The project is expected to provide access to relevant educational content, reinforce reading skills of school children and help mitigate the learning caused by schools closures during the peak of the covid-19 pandemic and the first phase will reach 25 households in underserved communities within Tamale Metro with the World reader BookSmart Tab solution” she stated.
A representative from World Readers, Alhassan Abdul Kayad said reading makes a better world so therefore he charged the beneficiaries to be champions of the power of reading, by putting literacy at the doorsteps of communities. He also encouraged ownership of the project in order for sustainability to be achieved.
Earlier, the regional manager of the Ghana Library Authority, Aaron Kuwornu said the Covid-19 pandemic has created newer opportunities for library patronage and that was all geared towards eliminating the poverty of literacy.
He encouraged parents and leaders to ensure that education is enhanced through library patronage since that was pivotal to learning.
Story By: Nelson Nyadror Adanuti
