Editor,

I wish to stress that it is extremely important to encourage a reading culture in our society. This will help our people grow mentally and fulfill their potential.

Neither a subsistence farmer nor a graduate chemist can fulfill his or her potential without the cognitive growth that comes from reading widely and people will not read further than their immediate needs if reading has not become their habit.

Such growth is every person’s right and will benefit the country economically and benefit the individual personally.
To foster such a reading habit and forge the link between people with basic literacy skills and the libraries, it is necessary to reach out to the people by having a commission in charge of selection of good books.

The commission would summarize these books in simple words and show them to the public.

Librarians will have to take the books to the people rather than waiting for the people to come to the books if they really want people to read.  It is necessary to provide material that is easy enough to understand and interesting. Then literacy skills will grow and yield fruit rather than wasting away for lack of use.

Finally, and most important of all, it is necessary to create a general awareness of the importance of books to the mental growth of an individual and to the economic growth of a nation. It is very important to avail to readers plenty of books which are both easy and interesting and to provide them in a manner that is culturally acceptable.

Once people have embraced a reading habit, they will pass it on to the next generation, and demand for books will grow and the citizens of Rwanda will start to achieve as they should. Enjoy reading books!!!!

Agnes Balisanga
Lecturer, Kigali