BREDA, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Culture of Senegal, organized on Wednesday, October 27 at the Théâtre National Daniel Sorano, a ceremony dedicated as the "Books Collection and Distribution Day". The purpose of this ceremony was to promote the culture of reading by collecting thousands of books and eventually install school libraries in every region of Senegal.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, one inhabitant out of two lives in poverty and a major cause of poverty is illiteracy and the lack of training. This is why this day was a wonderful opportunity for UNESCO to sensitise public authorities, private partners and the civil society about the necessity to adopt dynamic policies geared towards promoting reading in Africa and in this line contribute to sustainable development of the African Continent.


The ceremony was held in the presence of the Minister of Education of Senegal, Professor Moustapha Sourang, the Minister of Culture, Mrs Safiatou N'Diaye Diop, the Director of BREDA, Mr. Armoogum Parsuramen, the Secretary General of the National Commission of UNESCO, Mr. Assane Hane and hundreds of invitees and pupils from different quarters of Dakar.

In his speech, the Minister of Education, Proffessor Moustapha Sourang, first thanked UNESCO for "contributing unwaveringly to the fight against illiteracy and the improvement of the quality of education in Senegal". He then precised that " no education system can be preferment if it does not include a learning system focused on reading that is socially and economically effective, capable of insuring for each citizen a solid cultural practice characterized by the love of reading".


Mr. Armoogum Parsuramen, Director of BREDA, on his part, thanked all participants and donators who had generously contributed to the success of the ceremony in Senegal. He then expressed the intention of BREDA to carryout the program to other countries of the region. He later informed the audience that he was leaving BREDA on the 1st of November 2004 to take office as Secretary of the Executive Council of UNESCO in Paris leaving the way for the new Director of BREDA Mrs. Lalla Aïcha Ben Barka.

The ceremony, that enabled the collection of over 35 000 Books,was made up of speeches, donations, plays performed by renown comedians, not forgetting the brilliant musical performance of the Ambassador of UNESCO, Mr. Thione Balago Seck.