Ethiopia worried about declining reading culture

 

High prices and lack of government initiative leading to decline in reading culture, say Ethiopian writers

By Tesfa Mogessie

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia – The Ethiopian Writers’ Association is worried about what it describes as a serious decline in the culture of reading fiction, with authors now having little incentive to produce more books.

“Reading culture is on the decline in Ethiopia,” Yitagesu Getnet, the association’s acting head, told Anadolu Agency.

Though there is no research clearly indicating this decline, surveys conducted on residents in the capital Addis Ababa show that most people are reading little or nothing at all.

“In the 1970s and 1980s, there were government-run printing enterprises and the then Ministry of Education used to distribute the published books across the country, providing for a visible readership,” Yitagesu said.

“Currently,” he continued, “the government seems to be giving little emphasis to activities stimulating the cultures of bot reading and writing.”

“The distribution and publishing of books is left for the competitive private sector, except for textbooks,” he said.

He said that it is hard to find the latest books at public schools and universities, which are supposed to be the first to acquire them for their library shelves.

“The distribution of newly published books is limited to a few areas,” he said.

Yitagesu noted that his association is working to lobby government policy makers to introduce policies to improve the reading culture of young people and subsidize printing costs as part of major economic development programs.

Prominent author Hailemelkot Mewael, who is also member of the association, said “printing prices are unbearably high and so are the prices of books,” adding that this will certainly harm the country’s reading culture.

Hailemelekot has written several fiction books, including the widely read and narrated Amharic novels “Yewedianesh” and “Gungun.” Amharic is the national language of Ethiopia.

“I think the price of books is what is partly scaring away potential readers,” he said. “I for one do not find any incentive to write more (books),” which he said “students cannot afford to buy.”

He said that nearly 30 percent of his sales usually go to distributors.

According to him, more and more people are drawn away from creative writing and read books such as how-to guides: “Books about business and entrepreneurship are the ones that sell these days.”

Henok Maereg is a book shop owner in downtown Addis Ababa.

“Very few people come to us and most go away after looking at the price tags,” he said. “Book selling is no longer a profitable trade.”

Journalist and biographer Zekeriya Mohammed recently authored a book on the life of the recently deceased and legendary singer Tilahun Gessese.

He told the Anadolu Agency that although it was difficult to find studies on the subject, one can observe that “we are not really readers.”

He said he visited a recent book fair at a major convention center in the capital city and, “there were far fewer people than would have been the case if it was bazaar or trade fair.”

“It is sad to see so few people coming to such an important event,” he said.

Source: newsfultoncounty.com