The National Alliance of Reading Advocates (NARA), a group composed of reading advocates in
the country and a campaign project by the National Book Development Board (NBDB)’s Readership Development Division (READ), believes that it is on the right
track to avert the country’s reading crisis.
For the first time, the NARA and its reading allies from
more than 100 organizations gathered in a meaningful conference convened by the NBDB at the National
Museum of Fine Arts in Manila. It brought together reading advocates
from various organizations, schools, universities, national government
agencies, local government units, and
advocacy arms of corporations, hoping to bring awareness to the importance and
urgency of reading, and highlighting its impact on nation-building.
During the event, NARA presented its mission that is
aligned with that of the NBDB being the leading
catalyst for building
a reading culture in the Philippines, and being a strong pillar for the
nation’s reading campaigns in the future.
Also presented during the conference with the theme “Pamitinan ng
Lingkod-Mambabasa,” was
the NARA Agenda 2025-2030. This agenda seeks to empower reading advocates to
effect social and behavioral change in Philippine readership through campaign
infrastructure, capacity building, and network building. It will also serve as
a guidebook that contains NARA’s
concrete vision for readership in the country
based on its analysis of the state of the reading nation.
Upon full ratification, this agenda will then support
activities and interventions in line with its contents,
and shall form the basis of the NBDB’s readership interventions, both as an individual reading advocate agency and as the alliance’s secretariat, for the next five
years.
Other highlights of the
conference include the presentation of the State of the Reading Nation, an
informal sharing of best practices from select organizations called “Brown
Bag sessions,” the announcement of Readership Development Grants, the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the NBDB, represented by
Executive Director Charisse Aquino-Tugade, and
Arvin Manuel Villalon, Director for Mindanao of the National Museum of the Philippines
(NMP) for the NMP Book Nook sites, and finally the oathtaking of NARA
members, led by Carlo Ebeo, the National Commission for Culture
and the Arts (NCCA) Commissioner for the Subcommission on Cultural Dissemination.
Reading advocates take centerstage
What made the event truly interesting was the presence
of its two keynote speakers.
The first was para-librarian and “book missionary”
Hernando “Mang Nanie” Guanlao, who was also the guest of honor. Guanlao made
headlines when his “Reading Club 2000,” which he founded out of his home in
Barangay La Paz, Makati City, garnered significant media attention.
The place was a hub of his personal textbooks and
collected volumes. The collection grew over the years, mainly through book
donations coming from his throng of supporters and partner-organizations. As an offshoot of his efforts and love of books, a network of book
collectors then collaborated in order to bring donated books to more shelves
around the country, particularly in remote or underserved areas, those where
books are largely inaccessible.
The second keynote
speaker, Rica Acebuche, a young reading
advocate from Samar, believes that reading is an
important tool to gain important life skills. Rica was considered the reading
enthusiast among her siblings, having learned to love reading by doodling on books and reading stories
aloud.
It was her involvement as a volunteer with the Reading Club 2000 that opened her eyes and gave her the idea for “Reader’s of Barrio,” a free book-giving and literacy education program that serves reading communities in remote areas such as in the municipality of Laoang, Northern Samar. With Mang Nanie, they were able to send hundreds of books—all packed in sacks and boxes, hauled onto trucks, then loaded into planes and boats—and finally reached the growing community of readers in Laoang.
The NARA is a unified network anchored on a collaborative working environment in order to better spread the news on existing readership initiatives. This is a project
by the NBDB that serves as an integral part of the agency’s ongoing
efforts to boost readership, given declining
reading scores among Filipinos.
“This conference announces to the world what we want to
achieve, which is to strengthen the reading culture and build a nation of
readers. This event signifies the beginning of a major collective step in
addressing reading gaps. We still have a long way to go, but with our growing
alliance, I know that a stronger reading culture is underway,” says Daniel
Lorenzo Mariano, OIC Division Chief of READ.
Membership to the NARA is open to reading advocates who
are committed to help improve Philippine readership. For more information and
details on how to register, visit bit.ly/joinnara or contact the NBDB Reading
Campaigns Section at campaigns@books.gov.ph.
