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Books and the Third World

I first visited Africa in 1964 and have just returned from my second visit (Nov. 30 – Dec. 17, 2005).
Since books are a major part of my life I look for bookstores everywhere I go. I go to libraries and discuss books with librarians and with students. Whenever possible I buy books in the countries I visit.
On this visit I did not take paper books with me. I took a lot of work, two computers, an iPod and a Palm Pilot. I listened to podcasts and some music on the flights to Africa and did some work. I had a few e-books on my computer and several on my PDA, but I had read them.
I had hoped to buy magazines or books in Kampala, but since our hotel was some distance from the downtown area I did not have an opportunity to visit a bookstore. When we moved to the conference hotel on Lake Victoria (Entebbe) I was disappointed to find that there were no magazines for sale at the hotel. There was a shop attached to the hotel which advertised 'books for sale', but the seven used books in the shop were not appealing to me or to anyone else, apparently.Later I visited two private bookstores in Nairobi and bought several books to entertain me for the rest of the trip.
In 1964 school children sought books, any kind of books, they said. We left them some of the books we brought with us to read that summer. Churches and service clubs from North America and Europe have sent boxes of books to schools and other organizations in Africa, but, in many cases, these have been books that have been discarded by individuals and libraries. Children and adults who are in school or trying to increase their qualifications need the best books, books which are current and relevant to their needs.
Students in North America are complaining about the costs of textbooks. Imagine adding the cost of shipping these books 10,000 miles and then consider the total cost of supplying a foreign textbook to a child in Africa.

While I love paper books I feel that the only way that most libraries in the third world can stay current in terms of books and scientific journals is by using e-books and e-journals. The librarians I met with agreed with me.
Local authors and scientists could publish their material more easily if there were the alternative of using e-publications. These publications could then be made available to local libraries, schools and Universities. At the moment many local authors are dependent on foreign publishers for opportunities to publish their work.
I know that not everyone in the third world has a computer: but almost everyone has a CD player, and some have iPods. If one can play music, one can listen to an audio book. Many University libraries now have extensive computer labs, and virtually everyone in urban areas can access the internet through the many, inexpensive, computer cafés.
Investing in new technology in the third world will pay dividends. At the moment students and professors are excited about the potential of new and innovative approaches to making knowledge accessible.

Back from Africa

I returned recently from a trip to Uganda and Kenya. While most of my friends are certain that this was a relaxing safari my main purpose was to deliver a keynote address on e-books and new information technology to the African Crop Science Society conference in Entebbe, Uganda. While I was there my colleague Ross Wein and I visited Universities, libraries, and government agencies to learn more about the opportunities for using e-books, e-journals and other technology in science and education.
We also re-visited areas where we as students with Operation Crossroads Africa had spent time in 1964.
There have been some significant changes in the past 41 years: there is increased prosperity in the upper income sectors of society and even in the lower income sectors. However, poverty is a major problem as is HIV/AIDS. Urbanization – which includes numerous shanty towns in Nairobi and Kampala – is creating (or allowing us to focus on) serious social and environmental problems. Deforestation and cultivation threaten the physical stability of hillside farms. Drought has been a serious concern: Kenya has not had the expected seasonal rains for three years.
Nevertheless, many people are optimistic about the future, especially with respect to tourism. Tourists fly in and out of Nairobi's Wilson Airport to exotic locales such as Maasai Mara. Safari companies take other tourists on day trips to see wildlife. One can be picked up at a five star hotel in Nairobi early in the morning and be taken through the Nairobi National Park, returning for lunch to chat about the wildlife one has seen just 7 km from the city centre. It's perhaps the smallest but the most accessible park in east Africa.
Most people feel some connection to or significant interest in the landscapes and the people of Africa. That may be due to movies such as Out of Africa or articles in National Geographic, but there may be more basic reasons. The challenges that African countries are attempting to meet are important to all of us.