Mobile libraries

Inculcating a culture of reading and literacy is symbolic of a progressive state and perhaps this has spoken to the Punjab Higher Education Commission (PHEC), which has vowed to launch mobile libraries to improve people’s relationships with books. On a macro level, this is a laudable initiative, not to mention a dire one considering the dearth of libraries and the culture of intellectualism that is conspicuously missing from our country and sadly, even from many of our academic institutions. Simultaneously, establishing mobile libraries seems to be a bit of a jump in fostering a reading culture. The most prominent factor is that less than 60 per cent of Pakistan’s population and 63 per cent of Punjab’s population is literate, according to 2015 statistics by Unesco, with ‘literate’ loosely defined.

The crux of the literacy problem is school enrolment and poorly-resourced schools. Poverty also dissuades families from sending children to school. Hence, the Punjab government needs to first thoroughly review these problems and enforce Article 25-A of the Constitution. Establishing mobile libraries, nonetheless, can play a role in not only providing accessibility to resources, but also positive influence for parents and children towards obtaining education. Reading is a highly undervalued activity that helps to develop fluency and comprehension. The PHEC must also delve into the literacy problem in order to garner support for their libraries. Several other donors might be willing to help establish more libraries across the province and country if they believe people will appreciate and utilise them. However, the public will only use libraries effectively if they have the reading skills.

As bookstores close down, both globally and in Pakistan, we must ensure that our generations do not miss out on the world of wonderment that libraries contain. With Pakistan having one of the lowest literacy rates in the world, the initiative is an overall welcome one and should be expanded to other provinces.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 22^nd, 2017.

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