NATIONAL Librarian, Professor Lenrie Olatokubo Aina has attributed the absence of a widespread reading culture in Nigeria as an effective barrier to her development and international competitiveness.
He stated this in Calabar on Thursday during the Readership Promotion campaign with the theme: Working together to build a virile reading nation; Challenges and strategies.
Professor Aina who decried the poor reading culture in country said leading world nations pride themselves on their promotion of reading.
Represented by Abel Odigba, a deputy director in the organisation, he said that a good reading culture is one of the fundamental buildings blocks of learning adding that it enriches the knowledge to full participation in modern society.
He said that it is in recognition of the role a good reading culture played in the socio-economic development of the society that the National Library of Nigeria, which is the apex library in the country, commenced the initiative to undertake the readership promotion campaign.
According to him, the campaign planned to take place in the 23 state branches of the organisation had already been held in eight state branches.
Professor Aina said, “It is right to say that reading culture in Nigeria is poor and that the benefits of good reading culture in any country cannot be overemphasised given the fact that reading enriches the knowledge of full participation in modern society.
“Becoming a skilled and adaptable reader enhances the chances of success at school and beyond. Reading is not just for school purposes, it is for life long-learning.”
He, however, said the core objectives of the readership promotion campaign was to encourage reading among Nigerians, promote the increase of reading materials as well as identify obstacles which inhibits reading and ways to eliminating them.
Delivering the key note address, Prof. Olu Lawal of the Department of Library and Information Science in the University of Calabar said Nigeria was yet to move from 40-45 per cent current literacy rate hence the need to embrace reading culture that could create a network of like minds which would in turn enhance national development.
He said Nigeria being a leading third world country should strive hard to improve on its reading culture in order to enhance national development.
On his part, Deputy Governor of Cross River State, Professor Ivara Esu said the state government was committed to the development of the education sector in the state, adding that it would continue to invest massively in the sector.
Represented by the state commissioner for education, Godwin Ettah, he said the state government had already set aside some amount of money to drive the readership promotion campaign in order to improve on the reading culture of citizens.
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