A few months ago, in celebration of World Book Day, Ubongo started a Pan-African Book Drive Campaign in different African countries. In the spirit of utu, the swahili word for shared humanity, Ubongo called on their Pan-African audience and the general public to contribute gently-used or new children’s books of all genres and age-groups which would be donated to underserved kids and children centers in Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Malawi and Nigeria. Last Tuesday, December 12th 2022, a feeling of excitement was aroused among the children of Nkombo Island, specifically Ecole Primaire Bugumiro Foundation, as they received the books collected through Ubongo’s Pan-African Book Drive Campaign. “We believe every child, no matter their circumstances, deserves to have books and access to the literacy support they need to ignite a lifelong love of reading. In our Utu culture, we believe that ‘The gift of reading’ is the most valuable thing we can give to children during this festive season. As Garrison Keillor put it, ‘A book is a gift you can open again and again’. Our wish is for every child to have the opportunity to find stories they enjoy and learn from, books that feel like support and inspiration for who they can become and what their futures hold. Being a Pan-African organization, we encouraged people to donate books by various African authors to highlight the importance of representation in written form. We will also spotlight donated books written by African authors on social media.” said Isaie Micomyiza, Rwanda Country Manager at Ubongo. Ecole Bugumiro Foundation received 1382 children’s books; including 1000 copies of the books adapted from Ubongo’s edutainment shows, 100 copies of Rwandan publishers’ bestsellers donated by Rwanda Children’s Books Organisation (RCBO), 82 titles donated by Kigali Public Library, and 200 copies of RCBO’s children’s magazine known as Karame. The books will be placed in a free classroom that is being turned into a community library and shall remain open even during weekends for neighboring children to visit and enjoy the reading. At the official delivery of the books to the school, children also had a chance to watch an episode of Ubongo Kids and discuss it together with their teachers. Teachers of Ecole Primaire Bugumiro Foundation were also given USB flash drives and SD cards with Ubongo content so that they can help their children to continue to enjoy the power of edutainment. Anyone can find, download, and share Ubongo’s video, audio and printable content through their digital platform, Ubongo Toolkits About Ubongo: Ubongo is Africa's leading producer of kids' edutainment. As a non-profit social enterprise, we create fun, localised and multi-platform educational content that helps kids learn, and leverage their learning to change their lives. Ubongo reaches over 32 million families across Africa through accessible technologies like TV, radio and mobile phones. Learn more about Ubongo at www.ubongo.org
