World Book Day: Importance Of Promoting, Protecting Literary Works

Yesterday, April 23, was World Book and Copyright Day. The theme for this year’s was “History and Stories”, to celebrate the contribution of books and authors to our global culture and the connection between copyright and books. Nigeria leads in the global league of States with the largest number of children of school age that are out of school and also has an estimated level of illiteracy at 70 per cent of its adult population.

The essence of the day should hopefully intrigue Nigerian leaders enough, to rouse them to begin to fund, motivate and prioritise creative and research enterprises. This would enable us appreciate in greater depth books as the most potent vectors of values and knowledge, and depositories of the intangible heritage that propels development. As windows onto the diversity of cultures, books serve as sources of material wealth and this is why effective copyright laws must be enacted to protect works of creative artists. More importantly, our government should be concerned with issues of intellectual property rights and changes in the literary world.  For instance, the advent of digital formats and the transition to open licensing for knowledge sharing has thrown up new challenges. This means more uncertainty, but also new opportunities in innovative business models in the world of publishing.

There are questions about the definition of the book and the meaning of authorship in the digital era. Our government must join forces with authors, publishers and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in the new debates about the dematerialisation of books and the rights of authors.

April 23 is a figurative date for world creative writing. On this day in 1616, Cervantes, Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega all died. It is also the date of birth or death of other famous authors. UNESCO holds its General Conference on this day, to give worldwide honour to books and authors, and to young people caught in situations that threaten to deny them access to books. This year’s focus on youth and the impact of the culture of books, reading, writing and publishing hopefully will improve literacy rates, if followed up with the right policy. With programmes aimed at discovering and uplifting would-be authors and young artistes and those to protect their works, more women and men will benefit from literacy and accessible formats.

Books remain the most powerful force in peace building. As Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani schoolgirl who was shot by the Taliban for attending classes said in her speech at the United Nations, “Let us pick up our books and our pens. They are our most powerful weapons.” It will be a fitting damnation to those who consider books sinful and a celebration for those who, in spite of security challenges, insist on the pursuit and sharing of knowledge.

Leadership