Chinese philosopher Confucius once said that "no matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading or else surrender to self chosen ignorance.”  Although this was mentioned centuries ago, it is a clear reflection of what is happening in the country today despite continuous efforts by the Government and other stakeholders. Even with modern platforms such as digital libraries in place, experts believe that the journey of promoting a model reading culture in Rwanda is still far from the finish line.

Neglected roles

Rukundo Kanyankole, the president of the Association of English Teachers of Rwanda (AETR) is convinced that majority of parents are still neglecting a pivotal role in promoting the reading culture.

"I have two children; one is 10 and the other is 6. The younger one cannot read, but I help her look at the illustrations in simple textbooks. The older one can read quite well and can help the sister, but I take the initiative to observe them every day,” Kanyankole says.

Both the early childhood development (ECD) and adult literacy policy give mandate to districts and the Ministry of Education to be involved in promoting literacy activities. As a result, community libraries have been set in almost every district to provide a more conducive reading environment. However, for long, just a handful of parents utilise them.

"Just a few parents turn up at these libraries, but remember, reading should be holistic. If only my child gets involved in reading alone when the other 10 students she plays with are not reading, then I am not promoting a culture to benefit the community,” he adds.

 Mercy Catherine, the Education Programme Signature coordinator at Save the Children Rwanda, an NGO that promotes ECD, also agrees with Kanyankole that with less parental involvement at an early age, young ones are less stimulated to read.

"A child should be stimulated while still in the womb and reading should continue after birth. Basing on different studies, children who do not get this kind of exposure get alienated to books when they start school,” Catherine says.

Challenges of publishing books

Although the publishing sector was liberalised, majority of publishers who have a huge role in putting more books on the market are constrained by the lack of certain facilities.

Mary Gorreth Mbabazi, the manager of Furaha Publishers, points out that affordable quality printing services are still limited in Rwanda.

"You find most Rwandan publishers printing from Nairobi or even as far as India or Malaysia. Having affordable quality printing services would solve this challenge for publishers,” Mbabazi says.

Mbabazi also emphasises the need to improve community sensitisation towards buying  books for home use.

"Reading is essential to development, but unless there is thorough sensitisation, few parents buy reading materials for their children,” Mbabazi adds.

But Dinah Murenzi, the manager of Highland Publishers in Kimironko refutes these claims, explaining that the price of a book should be the last thing parents should give as a reason not to buy books for their children.

"We have books that go for as cheap as Rwf1,500. The other books that seem slightly expensive go for Rwf5,000 but are meant for students in primary six. This means that books for children are much cheaper and affordable,” Murenzi explains.

Stephen Mugisha, the chairman of Rwanda Publishers Association, says the reading culture in rural areas is worse than it is in urban areas.

According to Mugisha, unless a balance is struck between communities, the setting will still discourage people from reading.

"Parents in rural areas cannot read; how will they help their children if they too cannot read?” he wonders, adding, "It is these rural communities which are less involved in promoting the reading culture.”

On top of the printing costs, Mugisha says there are several other factors which hinder publishing.

"Printing a book from India is cheaper than Nairobi; there is just an element of quality involved and that cannot stop people from acquiring books already on the market,” he insists.

Research findings

A recent survey conducted by Save the Children on awareness of emergent of early literacy in Rwanda established that parental involvement, whether illiterate or not, had an effect on child literacy.

Of the 516 (15.3 per cent urban, 84.7 per cent rural) respondents from six different cells in Rwanda’s five provinces, it was found that 1 per cent understood that cognitive development begins at 0 years, 32 per cent knew that children can begin learning letters from 2 to 4 years, and surprisingly, only 30 per cent had an idea on ways of how illiterate parents can help their children.

Although some parents claim that they cannot afford books for their children because they are highly priced, Frank Shaka, the headmaster of ESSA Nyarugunga in Kanombe, Kicukiro District, insists that the reason is just a ‘lame excuse’.

"You do not need to buy very expensive books, even carrying a newspaper from office to your children at home can do a lot to improve their reading skills,” Shaka explains.

He adds that children who have exposure to reading materials, such as those who live in teachers’ homes, grasp concepts faster.

"When a teacher marks scripts, he is likely to carry some home and will mark while the children are paying attention. It is even easier for them to ask their parent questions and in the process, they learn some aspects,” he adds.

However, Alex Kansiime, a teacher at Wellspring Academyin Kigali, argues that students too have a big role to play towards improving their reading habits.

"At our school, for instance, we have a programme called ‘Drop down everything and read dear.’ When a bell is rang for this activity, all students are supposed to put down whatever they have and find something to read at that time, meaning that they should be actively involved,” Kansiime says.

Parents voice out their concerns

Much as the Government of Rwanda alongside several organisations like Save the Children and UNICEF are supporting initiatives to promote the reading culture, parents still have mixed feelings about reading.

Tobius Ntwali, a parent in Remera, Kigali, feels that more work should be delivered at the school considering his busy schedule.

"It is not that I do not want to spend time with my children, but sometimes you need to work hard and provide money for things like school fees. Schools sell knowledge and we pay the price, so we cannot do much because the child spends more time at school,” Ntwali says.

Brandine Uwineza, a parent in Kicukiro, would love to read for his child but says she is unable to because she cannot read books written in English.

"The books she likes to read are written in English, and even then, I cannot help her a lot unless they are just illustrations,” Uwineza says.

However, Kanyankole refutes those claims saying that: "There are books printed in many languages, including Kinyarwanda, from which parents can choose”

For Maureen Ingabire from Gatsata in Kigali, she makes it a point to go through books with her ten-year-old son over the weekend despite her busy schedule.

"I always discuss with my son, we even take off some time to read together during the afternoons over the weekend,” Ingabire says.

Students on the choice of reading materials

Students who spoke to the Education Times expressed a lot of interest in reading different materials.

Alain Shyaka, a Senior Two student at GS Kimironko, too, finds it easier to read newspapers and short essays compared to pamphlets.

"It is difficult to access the latest newspapers, but when I come across an old one, I read it. Personal reading is interesting because you are not under any kind of pressure,” he explains.

Diru Mbabazi from Aiper Nyandugu in Kanombe finds reading for pleasure more appropriate during holidays.

"I can read anything during holidays because I am less distracted by school work,” Mbabazi explains.

Jubil Rukundo from Gatsata Primaire has more interest in fictional novels and believes he would greatly improve his English language proficiency if he had variety of them. "Only books which have investigative stories interest me. When I get such books, I can read for many hours,” he says.

How can parents contribute to building the reading culture of children

Ibrahim Mugisha, businessman

My son is in kindergarten. Every evening his mother and I try to find time to ask him to read a few letters he has so far learnt. I am always busy, but when I get some free time I read to him some stories. It is important for us parents to get involved in our children’s education at a young stage.

Elias Rwiririza, farmer

I try so much to follow up on what my children do at school. Recently, they were given daily readers which they bring home and all though I cannot read effectively, I ask them to read loudly for everyone and we appreciate them for every improvement they are making in their reading. I also ask their older siblings to help them.

James Ainebyona, teacher

Parents should read often so as to inspire the young ones into the same. Treat everything at home as a reading material; from the food labels, to newspaper headlines, to words written on the television and to any word you come across. This will open the little ones’ eyes to every written thing they will come across .They will start reading for fun which is important.

Hasfa Uwera, mother

My children know it is a tradition for them to share what their teacher taught them. I help out with the homework and I look for interesting stories to read for them because they have not yet learnt to read independently. I, however, encourage them to read the few words they can manage to read on their own.

Estelle Nyiragendo, house wife

I help my children to read every time they come back from school.

I also buy interesting reading books with funny pictures for them to read.

Of recent, they get books to bring home from school and I encourage them to share the stories they read in these books.