Kenyans have been urged to embrace a reading culture to improve their communication skills.
Scholars say mastering one language (mother tongue) has left many Kenyans unable to communicate with foreigners.
African Library Project founder Chris Bradshaw said she started the project with the aim of supporting and embracing a reading culture and improving communication skills.
She was speaking at Maliki Boys High School in Bungoma North during the Librarians, Students and Teachers' Summit.
The founder said she started the library project 20 years ago upon her visit in Lesotho, where she worked with the local community and later spread throughout Africa.
“Upon my visit to Lesotho in 2004 is when I started a library where a single community worked, and later it grew and spread in Africa,” Bradshaw said.
With the help of partners in Africa, her project has established 4,000 libraries in 13 different African countries.
“Currently, we are working in 13 different countries where we have established libraries and we intend to spread more,” she said.
Among the countries where the project is being implemented are Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Malawi, Lesotho, South Africa and Botswana.
Through a partnership with Kibabii University in Bungoma, she said, they have set up 38 libraries in Bungoma, and plans are underway to establish more.
“I am impressed with how Kibabii University has helped us sell our agenda of Kenyans embracing the reading culture, we have seen change,” the project founder said.
In Kenya, the project is running in the Western and Nyanza regions, where there was great demand for libraries.
“We also have traffic partners: Kibabii University and Rongo University,” she said.
She said her project has also partnered with Tom Mboya University in Homa Bay county.
Apart from establishing libraries in schools, the project targets improving small libraries in sub-Saharan Africa.
She works with the local community to provide space for the new libraries, bookshops and a teacher who can be trained as librarian.
The project provides a curriculum for the teacher, who is trained locally by the university they are partnering with.
The libraries are well stocked. Readers can walk in and pick their favourite books to improve their English.
“We are pleased with how both teachers and students in Bungoma county have put these facilities to prudent use,” Bradshaw said.
“From the poems recitations I have heard, it is clear that the facilities have helped local students.”
Kibabii University acting deputy VC for partnership Prof Munir Muganda said the university is excited about the African Library Project.
It entered into partnership with ALP in 2019 and through the partnership, they have reached out to various schools, he said.
Some 70,000 books have been distributed to Bungoma schools and 61 librarians trained through the project.
Maliki Rising Star Academy deputy headteacher Doreen Wangila said the project has been of great importance to schools.
“Through this project, the children at her school are doing great by reading the books. They have become exceptionally good at speaking English and also communicating,” she said.
Wangila urged parents to help their children know English so they become good communicators.
“Most children in the villages are not able to make statements in English, therefore becoming poor communicators,” she said.