Access and Distribution

Every citizen has the right to education and culture. Their books must reflect their values and culture and must be relevant to their living circumstances. Only skilled local authors can address such needs.

The library is an institution that meets people’s information needs. This has been its role historically: providing a place for people to visit, ask questions, and access and use information resources. In doing so, libraries have long enabled people of all ages to learn and improve their lives. Public libraries have the particular role of meeting community-specific requirements.

The Impact of Open Licensing on the Early Reader Ecosystem examines how to use open licensing to promote quality learning resources for young children that are relevant and interesting.

This manual aims to provide practical guidance on the identification and selection of quality children’s reading materials for home use, and the identification or design of accompanying materials for caregivers to support children’s learning. The manual is part of the Read@Home initiative, which aims to deliver reading and learning materials to hard-to-reach homes.

In 2015, NBA received a grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation to explore the potential for open licensing in enhancing the availability of mother-tongue early-literacy reading resources in the developing world.

With funding from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and as part of its work on the early literacy ecosystem and open licensing, Neil Butcher & Associates (NBA) is conducting research into the successful sharing of alternative content creation and distribution models that harness open licensing.

This presentation was delivered delivered on 22 May, 2019 at the 3^rd African Library & Information Association (AfLIA) Conference and 5^th African Library Summit, held at the Weston Hotel in Nairobi, Kenya. The theme of the conference was ‘African libraries creating the Africa we want and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals’.

Mango Tree Literacy Lab (MTLL) is a Ugandan NGO that believes that African children have the right to read, write and engage with ideas in a language they know and understand. Since 2010, Mango Tree has been supporting early primary literacy in the Lango Sub-region of northern Uganda.

As schools in Uganda closed down in late March 2020 due to Covid-19, Mango Tree Literacy Lab (MTLL) had to reconsider its 2020 work plan.

This case study tells the story of a small Ugandan NGO’s experience using openly licensed government primers to support early primary literacy. Mango Tree Literacy Lab  (MTLL) believes that African children have the right to read, write and engage with ideas in a language they know and understand.