I&M Bank has partnered with a local Non-Government Organisation, namely Rwanda Bookmobile Initiative (RBI) through the Reading Aloud Campaign to promote the love for reading and storytelling amongst children aged between 3-12 years who are currently learning from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. The partnership was launched on Wednesday, July 29, 2020. According to Robin Bairstow, CEO, I&M Bank, the partnership was inspired by the fact that during the Covid-19 pandemic, recovery plans have been more focused on different sectors including education. “It is a brilliant idea and a good partnership to help children enjoy books and stories while at home during these times,” he said. I&M Bank gave RBI a Rwf45 million grant that will be used to pay subscriptions on different local radios and televisions for three months. Story-telling and book-reading shows will be aired on radios to reach more children in their homes. Shannon Porthault, Co-Founder, Rwanda Bookmobile Initiative, said that the initiative to air story-telling and book-reading on radios and televisions came after realizing that Covid-19 pandemic prohibited children from accessing libraries and going to school. “If children cannot come to the library, let us take the library to them. With this partnership, we will be able to reach more radios and more children,” she explained. Rwanda Bookmobile Initiative has been in operation for one year and has had a pilot project with schools only in Kigali where they reached 1,700 children every day. Porthault is confident that via radios and televisions, more children will enjoy books and stories read to them. The targeted age is 3-12-year-old children. Rwanda Bookmobile seeks to promote reading culture in children by providing access to a variety of books and teachers and storytellers that capture a child’s imagination and create the opportunity for them to acquire not only a skill but to also start a reading culture. Complementing existing remote learning The initiative will complement the education that children are receiving at home through radio and TV programs. Rwanda Education Board has been airing classes for primary and secondary students on radios and TVs. The children program will run from July until December 2020. It will focus on creating fun and entertainment content for children with Rwandan stories published locally with the intent of preserving the Rwandan culture. Alice Nkulikiyinka, Board Director of I&M Bank said the Bank seeks not only to create a reliable way of banking but also bettering society as a whole. “We can admit that reading culture in children still needs a boost and such initiatives will do that,” she said. (L-R) Robin Bairstow, CEO, I&M Bank, Alice Nkulikiyinka, Board Director of I&M Bank, and Shannon Porthault, Founder of Rwanda Bookmobile.
