The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization has named Accra, Ghana’s capital, as the World Book Capital for 2023. (UNESCO). Accra was chosen for the initiative because it aims to leverage the power of books to engage young people as a means of skilling up the future generation.
Following the evaluation by the World Book Capital Advisory Committee, which was declared in a press release signed by Audrey Azoulay, the Director-General of UNESCO. The city presented the committee with a broad proposal that focuses on marginalized populations with high levels of illiteracy, such as women, youth, migrants, street children, and people with disabilities.
Among the measures in place to be carried out during the event is institutional support for lifelong learning to foster a culture of reading, as well as the reinforcement of school and community infrastructure. Aside from promoting the publishing industry and other creative industries, the program intends to promote professional skill development to boost the country’s socio-economic transition.
On World Book and Copyright Day, April 23, 2023, the year of celebrations will begin with the theme “Reading to Connect Minds for Social Transformation.” The placement of mobile libraries to reach out to the poor and the holding of workshops to promote the reading and authoring of books in different Ghanaian languages are among the events scheduled to commemorate the anniversary.
Construction of skills and training centers for unemployed young people, as well as the staging of competitions to promote Ghanaian arts and culture and to highlight Ghanaian culture, are among the other operations. A reading community for the city of Accra will be the legacy project.
The event was put together by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ghana Book Development Council (GBDC), the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Complimentary Education Agency, the Ghana Commission for UNESCO, Ghana Association of Writers, Ghana Library Association, and the Ghana Publishers Association when Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwumis, a Deputy Minister of Education for the Republic of Ghana learned of Accra’s selection to host the 2023 event, he complimented the team on their efforts in winning the bid.
In his words, “Plans to host the year will begin immediately, and the general public will be informed in due course,” citing the Ghana Library Authority’s recent win of the London International Book Fair Excellence Award for 2021 Library of the Year as evidence of development in the book sector.
“I am super excited to host such an international event which will allow this nation to participate in a world-class activity to tell the story of Ghana to the rest of the world,” he said.
Dr. Adutwum told the globe that Ghana will use the occasion to highlight its rich culture and other noteworthy aspects of the country.