Port Harcourt World Book Capital 2014 timetable out

Mrs Kalango, CEO with Chinedu Amah,  Head of Communication PHWBC

Few days to the commencement of Port Harcourt’s tenure as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Book Capital 2014, its hosts have been working tirelessly and have completed pilot programmes.

At an interactive session with the media at Freedom Park in Lagos recently, the President of the Rainbow Book Club, Mrs. Koko Kalango revealed that the Port Harcourt World Book Capital 2014 year-long programme would kick off with a week-long of activities lasting from Tuesday, April 22 to Saturday 26 April 2014, but the main opening ceremony would take place on Wednesday, April 23, 2014, which is the United Nations (UN) World Book and Copyright Day.

Similarly, a statement made available to Daily Newswatch, hinted that all hands are on deck to deliver the programmes in the bid that was submitted to UNESCO.

The pilot phase of the programme, according to the statement, included the test run of book clubs and reading tree as well as the Walking Book in Rivers State. “A book donation drive and participation in CARNIVRIV (the annual Rivers State Carnival) were part of the effort to sensitize resident of the city to the World Book Capital project.”

The statement further stated that on the day of opening ceremony, when Bangkok hands over to Port Harcourt, the keynote address would be delivered by Nobel Laureate Professor Wole Soyinka.

“The opening ceremonies would include celebrities reading to children, interactive sessions with some of Nigeria’s most important author, a dance-drama directed by award winning playright Bikiya Graham-Douglas. Bikiya, a Port Harcourt girl, is currently in the city scouting local talent to participate in this drama titled “Along Came the Book,” which traces the role of information sharing from our oral tradition to the written word, culminating in the Port Harcourt World Book Capital. There would also be the public presentation of “The Walking Book,” a communal story on the Sights and Sounds of Rivers State written by children from across the 23 Local Government Areas of the state. Finally, visitors to Port Harcourt would be treated to the warm Rivers hospitality which includes the display of a boat regatta and excursion to Songhai Farms,” the statement revealed.

The statement also highlighted key components of the opening ceremonies, such as international literature exhibition from Tuesday, April  22 to Thursday, April 24, 2014. “Embassies and foreign missions in Nigeria, local and international book festivals, literary awards bodies, as well as key partners and stakeholders in the book chain industry have been invited to participate in this three- day exhibition which will showcase literature and literary efforts from around the world. Visitors would enrich their global perspective by a visit to this exhibition tagged “It’s a Small World After all”.”

 In the same vein, a Hay Festival initiative which it carries out with World Book Capitals - with Bogota in 2007 and Beirut in 2010, titled:  “Africa 39,” features writers from Africa, South of the Sahara. “This project comprises the selection and celebration of 39 writers under the age of 40 who have the potential to define the literature of an area or language. The research to arrive at the names of the authors was carried out by Kenyan author Binyavanga Wainana. A long list of about 100 names emerged from screening of the over 200 entries from Africa and the diaspora responded to a call that drew participation from authors, publishers, academics, libraries, readers and so on, around Africa and the diaspora. The panel of judges, who selected the final 39 where Elechi Amadi, Margaret Busby and Tess Onwueme.

“The 39 writers would be commissioned to write for an anthology to be published by Bloomsbury with foreword by Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka. Ellah Allfree will edit the Africa 39 anthology. The list of the 39 would be unveiled on the first day of the London Book Fair on April 8, 2014 and announced at during the opening ceremonies of the Port Harcourt World Book Capital programme.

“The 39 authors have been invited to the Port Harcourt Book Festival 2014 which would be mainly dedicated to the ‘Africa 39’ project. At this year’s festival the authors would converge in PH for a week of reading, debates and discourse around the city. Thereafter, they would participate in Hay festivals around the World.”

About 12 books have been carefully selected to feature in each of the months of the year. “Based on our general theme of possibilities, these books will be the subject of discussions on partner electronic and print platforms. A play based on each book would be staged through the year. Books for the first six months are: Arrow of God by Chinua Achebe in April, The Great Ponds by Elechi Amadi in May, This Child Shall be Great by Ellen Shirleaf Johnson in June, Ake by Wole Soyinka in                             July, Tomorrow Died Yesterday by Chimeka Garricks in August and Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Adichie in September.

In continuation, the statement revealed that 300 teachers have been trained to run book clubs and reading tree programme. “In preparation for the PH WBC programme, over 300 teachers from public and private primary and secondary schools around Port Harcourt are attending training sessions to equip them to run Reading Tree and book clubs over the WBC year. The Reading Tree is a graded reading scheme that requires participants (senior secondary school students) to read a book a week. Weekly book clubs are held where the children, with the guidance of a facilitator, discuss the book they have read and fill it in work books that have been prepared for this purpose.

“Having successfully completed the pilot Walking Book, in Rivers State, the National Walking book programme has kicked off. The Walking book involves writing on the Sights and Sounds of a particular region by children who live there. The World Book Capital is working with Unity Colleges around Nigeria on this project. 10 students from the Junior Secondary School section of each of the participating schools would work with their teachers to write about their states. The stories would be collated, published and presented at the annual Port Harcourt Book Festival in October. The national Walking Book began its journey from Port Harcourt, the UNESCO World Book Capital 2014 around the South South States (February, 17-21), then the South East States (February, 24-28) followed by the South West States (March, 3-7). Also, the Walking Book has toured the North West (March, 10-14), the North East (March, 17-21), then the North Central States (24-28 March) and finally it would journey back to Port Harcourt, World Book Capital, at the end of March.”

Port Harcourt was announced as the World Book capital by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) last year after it defeated Oxford in the United Kingdom and Moscow in Russia amongst others.

According to the UNESCO panel that made the final decision, "The City of Port Harcourt was nominated World Book Capital 2014 on account of the quality of its programme, in particular its focus on youth and the impact it would have on improving Nigeria's culture of books, reading, writing and publishing to improve literacy rates" says the panel of judges who reviewed all the nominations.”