Uncategorized
By Johnathan Paoli
The Basic Education Department in conjunction with corporate partners AVBOB and Oxford University Press South Africa (OUPSA) officially launched the 2025 Road to Literacy campaign, which is one of the country’s most ambitious mobile library initiatives.
The aim is to improve early-grade literacy and equitable access to reading resources.
Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube emphasised said it was critical to be able to read for meaning.
“Eight out of ten children in South Africa cannot read for meaning by the age of ten. This is our Achilles’ heel. If our children cannot read, they cannot learn. If they cannot learn, they cannot rise,” she said.
The event marked the announcement of 1000 school and NGO beneficiaries set to receive fully stocked mobile trolley libraries, each valued at R57,000 and filled with 500 curriculum-aligned books in all the official languages.
Now in its fourth year, the campaign has rapidly expanded its impact, with the rollout expected to distribute over 500,000 books nationally, doubling last year’s reach and bringing the total investment for this cycle alone to R57 million.
Opening the event, Tokyo Sexwale Primary School learner Jamila Mbedzi captured hearts with a reading performance that highlighted the transformative power of books.
Her confidence on stage served as a living testament to what access to literature can achieve.
This was followed by a stirring choir performance by learners from the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls and a panel discussion, moderated by Bongani Bingwa on the socio-economic barriers confronting learners in under-resourced communities.
The urgency behind the campaign stems from grim statistics.
During the panel discussion, Gwarube reiterated the importance of foundational learning, noting that the department’s focus has shifted to the earliest years, from birth to Grade 3, where long-term academic trajectories are forged.
“This challenge is not just about reading. It’s about confidence, self-worth and access to opportunity,” she said.
A strong theme running through the evening was the value of mother tongue instruction.
The minister maintained that research consistently illustrated that literacy in a home language during the early years enhanced cognitive development and sets the stage for multilingual proficiency.
OUPSA managing director Karen Simpson acknowledged the production challenges involved but stressed their importance.
“Publishing in all official languages is not just a technical task, it’s a moral imperative. Children need to see themselves in the stories they read. It’s about delivering the right book at the right time, in the right language,” she said.
AVBOB CEO Carl van der Riet underlined the mutual society’s commitment to education.
“As a 100-year-old institution, we understand that literacy is the bedrock of a thriving nation. This campaign is about more than books, it’s about equipping communities with the tools to grow, learn and lead,” he said.
Van der Riet noted the campaign’s evolution since 2022, highlighting the overwhelming demand from schools and community organisations. With more than 8000 applications received in a single year, he said “the hunger for reading is real, and our work is only just beginning”.
Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls executive director Gugulethu Ndebele brought an educator’s perspective to the dialogue.
“Too many of our children come to school already in survival mode. When a child is given a book that reflects their language and their world, it tells them they matter,” Ndebele said.
She called for intensified investment in early childhood development and teacher training, stressing that these interventions were essential to correcting systemic imbalances.
“You cannot fix Grade 12 results by starting in Grade 10. You have to start in Grade R or better yet, before that,” she said.
The event underscored the importance of collaboration among government, civil society and the private sector in tackling South Africa’s literacy crisis.
Gwarube praised AVBOB and Oxford for going beyond corporate social responsibility.
“This is a model of what effective public-private partnerships look like. We will work with anyone, so long as the outcome is real change for our learners,” she said.
“Campaigns like AVBOB’s, put more than just books in the hands of our children; they place transformation in the hearts of our communities.”
INSIDE EDUCATION