Book Aid International has been working in Cameroon since 1994. As the reach of the public library service network is limited, we worked for many years in partnership with the British Council. The British Council has played a pivotal role in distributing our books, and in developing a network of 20 community libraries in the north-west and south-west Anglophone provinces. In line with our aim to develop the capacity of local organisations, the British Council has now handed over the tasks of distribution to a local Cameroonian organisation: Education Information Services International (EISERVI).
EISERVI is now the main partner of Book Aid International in Cameroon. It distributes our books across the country, and continues to support community libraries, universities, and other institutions. With EISERVI’s support, we have recently begun a programme of training and refurbishment for five community libraries in the network.
Book Aid International books are often the founding collections of new libraries, and have also been well targeted to schools, grassroots NGOs, teacher resource centres and health-related organisations. EISERVI are encouraging the development of reading clubs and learning activities in schools, youth associations and Muslim communities.
With our support, various organisations have received quality information and training resources, enabling them to meet the needs of a range of target groups including young people, women, rural communities, agricultural workers and HIV/AIDS orphans. The organisations often give support in literacy skills or provide professional training.
We also support the Universities of Buea and Ngaoundere with higher education texts in all fields. They have been very well received by staff in these universities:
"Book Aid International has been a very great friend of the University of Buea. You have sent us so many books since 1994, when the university was just a year old and I called for assistance. We have asked for specific titles and have received them from you. You have sent a great many very good-quality, new higher education texts, and many extremely relevant books. I remember once a lecturer of Chemistry came in here to the library and said, ‘I can't believe what’s started happening! Several copies of a key textbook have just arrived from Book Aid International worth 20,000 CFA each [around £30]. We’ve been trying to get these books for years but the department hasn't been able to afford them.' If anything comes between us and our shipments of Book Aid International books, we get very jittery!"
Ms. Rosemary Shafack
University Librarian, Buea University Library
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