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Children are being encouraged to read in
indigenous languages, while African literature and authors are also being
promoted through the new African Literature Bookshop.
SOME 38 young learners were transfixed
while listening to stories read in Zulu, Tswana and South Sotho at the launch
of the African Literature Bookshop in Orange Grove on 26 June.
The Grade 0 children came from Kgodisang School in Alexandra, and were
entertained by the stories in as part of the Indigenous Reading Development Programme
introduced at the launch.
Reading is important, says executive mayor Amos Masondo (Photo: Enoch Lehung, City of Johannesburg)
It is aimed at stimulating reading in
indigenous languages for children aged five to nine; it is supported by the
African Literary Development Programme, which aims to popularise African
literature and encourage authors to write in all official languages.
For its part, the bookshop aims to raise
awareness, foster cultural pride and empower the surrounding community. Other
objectives are to support, inspire and introduce local writers to the public.
The programme aims to develop talent in
literature, increase public knowledge about indigenous literature and create an
interest in and appetite for it. It is aimed at people who are aware of
alternative cultures, artists, poets and writers. People who are not interested
in books will be approached through workshops and seminars.
Important
"Reading is
important; it is a means of language acquisition, of communication and of
sharing information and ideas," said Executive Mayor Amos Masondo, speaking at
the launch.
Guests at the launch included executive directors
and managing directors of City departments, members of the mayoral committee, and
assistant directors and managers in the City's library and information services
unit.
The bookshop is in the FNB Building
in Orange Grove, which was obtained through the Inner City Charter NGO Building
Commitment. It also contains a Migrants' Information Desk, with intercultural
exchange programmes.
The Indigenous Reading Development
Programme is supported by the City's library and information services and community
development units; the Department of Arts, Culture and Heritage; the National
Library of South Africa; and the Publishers' Association of South Africa.
It is just one of the programmes in which library
and information services participates that are aimed at preserving and
celebrating South Africa's literary heritage and promote indigenous languages.
JoLiFe
Others are the Johannesburg Literary Festival or JoLiFe, Battle of the Books, Story
Skirmish and the introduction of the African Literary Development Programme in
2007 and 2008, which included JoLiFe and other literary activities.
Between 2008 and 2009, the programme
focused on a writing competition, poetry and short story writing workshops and
intercultural dialogues. There were also book discussions, a story telling and
poetry festival and reading development programmes.
"I believe that this launch will make a
significant contribution to the development of African literature, help promote
a culture of reading as well as enhance our indigenous languages," said
Masondo.
"The development of indigenous reading
depends on the availability of suitable literature in indigenous languages. The
shortage of reading material in indigenous languages and the absence of public reading
places in indigenous languages have been a hindrance to the development of
African literature."
He added that the Indigenous Literature
Publishing Project aimed to publish books in different languages by writers
from different ethnic backgrounds.
BiblionefSA, a book donation agency, commissioned
the publishing of 50 titles in the 11 official languages. The 400 000 books
were donated to various institutions.
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