Set to celebrate Book Day

 THE Buk Bilong Pikinini will celebrate World Book Day today in all their libraries and the launch of the PNG reading champions

A statement from Buk Bilong Pikinini said they would be distributing 4,000 books to the community to read and pass on.

As part of its work to raise literacy levels, the organisation was bringing role models into their libraries to promote the importance of literacy to children and communities. 

The project will be launched during World Book Day today and it will be supported by Prime Minister Peter O’Neill’s wife, Linda Babao. 

Successful professionals from PNG will be visiting libraries to read to children and to motivate them to achieve.   

In preparation for World Book Day, the Friends of Buk Bilong Pikinini have been working all week to sort books for distribution.

This has involved more than 20 people and has had the support of companies.

Lisa Vernon, learning and development officer said: “We have some wonderful friends and volunteers who give so much of their time to support our work by reading to children. We want to encourage more successful people from PNG to give just an hour or two each year to help inspire the next generation.” 

“In 2010 PNG’s internationally reported literacy rate was 52%, a figure based on the national census self-declaration questions. 

“This is a low level of literacy for any country, but it is not the full story. 

“There is a difference between being able to write your name and being functionally literate – that is to be able to educate yourself through reading. 

“Recent research suggested that the rates of functional adult literacy in some areas of PNG may be less than 5% and that the real literacy rate for the country could be as low as 25%. 

“This would be one of the lowest literacy rates in the world.”