This campaign has now closed
Ethiopia needs books. The ability to read and write with understanding is a basic human right. Books are essential to support literacy and learning and to help people escape from poverty, develop their abilities and their communities and improve their health and well-being. In 2009, Book Aid International plans to provide our partner organisations in Ethiopia with 45,000 high quality books worth an estimated £540,000.
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Beneficiaries
Situation
Ethiopia needs to develop its economy yet almost two-thirds of the adult population cannot read and write with understanding. Ethiopia is making enormous efforts towards education and community development and local organisations are very much part of this work. However, although enrolment and retention of children in school have been successfully increased, classrooms are crowded, rural children are far less likely to go to school and for every 100 boys only 76 girls are enrolled. Education budgets are severely stretched and are often insufficient to provide even basic textbooks. There is little or nothing in the way of supplementary reading material for children and young people. In 2009, Book Aid International is working with The British Council, which distributes our books to schools, libraries and community organisations, and CODE Ethiopia (CODEE), an NGO which has built and stocked 62 rural village reading rooms using books received from Book Aid International and their own children's publications in local languages. The books we provide are carefully selected by qualified librarians to meet the needs of children, young people and adults We estimate that at least five people read each book, so a quarter of a million Ethiopians will benefit. Books change lives. We need to raise £97,000 to provide these books and manage our programme in Ethiopia in 2009.