THE lovable Funda Bala, the official mascot of National Book Week (NBW), came down from the cosy confines of the book shelves to entertain and engage children on the weekend at Exclusive Books at Mall of the South in Johannesburg.
BW will be celebrated this week from September 2 to 8 and is driven by the Department of Arts and Culture and the South African Book Development Council (SABDC).
Funda Bala which means ‘read, read’in Nguni and Sotho, made the public appearances to encourage parents and shoppers at malls to buy select books to donate to the NBW’s #buyabook campaign. The annual campaign seeks to collect English and indigenous language books which are donated to people all across the country.
#buyabook launched on September 24 and will run for two weeks ending on October 8. All South Africans are encouraged to #buyabook for just R20 from the select list of titles displayed prominently at the participating stores to donate.
Apart from Exclusive Books, #buyabook is also supported by Bargain Books, Bridge Books, Ethnikids and Love Books.
“We hope Funda Bala will inspire all parents and shoppers to buy books to donate so that children in remote parts of the country can own a book and read at leisure,” said Elitha van der Sandt, CEO, South African Book Development.
“Books are fundamental to an individual’s capacity to read. One of the main barriers to building a reading culture is the lack of appropriate and engaging books, including in indigenous languages.
“In absence of books in indigenous languages, children are unable to get the reading practice they need in the language they know best.”
According to the SABDC, 58 per cent of homes in South Africa do not have a single leisure reading book.
The #buyabook campaign seeks to put in the hands of children and adults alike suitable reading material and language-appropriate books that they will want to read.
Funda Bala travels all across the country during NBW to meet learners and adults and is the main attraction, especially for ECD learners.
National Book Week turns 10 this year and Funda Bala had been its energetic cheerleader for building a culture of reading among South Africans.
