FC Barcelona, Worldreader to send one million e-books to African children

Footballing giant FC Barcelona is teaming up with non-profit company Worldreader in a campaign aimed at getting people to send one-million e-books to school children in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The non-profit claims that it is already one-tenth of the way to achieving its goal, having delivered 100 000 e-books into the hands of 1 000 African children since it started operating in 2010.

WorldReader claims that “digital technology sharply lowers the cost and complexity of delivering books everywhere. As we make reading easier and less expensive, the world will read more”.

While some are sceptical about getting books to countries where poverty, hunger, and drought are realities, Worldreader reckons that getting books into the hands of children could actually drive prosperity.

The organisation also points out that 200-million children in the region will never have a book of their own. That’s what Worldreader is trying to change.

Thing is, you can hand out all the e-books you want, but it won’t change a thing if there’s no culture of reading. That’s where Barcelona comes in. Worldreader is using the Spanish Club’s players in a “Champions Read” campaign.

As well as the usual e-ink images, the children get pictures of their footballing heroes captioned with messages designed to inspire reading.

If you’ve got US$5 to spare, you can donate on Worldreader’s site. For every US$25 you donate, it says, five more books can be sent to the children in the programme. Donors can also choose to give e-readers as well as individual e-books.