Sitting at the office in early August, I was discussing with my colleagues whether, given the emerging Ebola crises, I should take my two daughters on their long awaited trip to West Africa. We were going to Ghana, a country that had no confirmed cases of the disease (and still doesn’t), but it was clear … Continue Reading →

I have to say when we put the finishing touches to our iREAD Vacation School I thought of it as a “best we could do but not good enough” kind of gesture to keep kids interested in reading and e-books through the summer. My visit to Ghana last week however not only assuaged my earlier … Continue Reading →

As you may know we have spent much of the last 12 months building up our relationships with the local publishers in Ghana as we seek to ensure that local content is centre-stage on our offer of reading material to students and teachers in the iREAD pilot. These publishers have been the bedrock upon which … Continue Reading →

Worldreader is a relatively young organization; this time last year we didn’t even have a web site.  We have done a lot with the few but valuable resources we possess.  One of the resources that we have used intensively has been our visual identity (better known as our logo) which our friends at Rassak speedily … Continue Reading →

Last Tuesday I got up at 4.30 am to travel to Kade, one of the locations chosen for the imminent launch of our iRead pilot. The early hour was needed because it is the only way to avoid the choking traffic (I am referring to the quality of traffic not only the clouds of fumes) … Continue Reading →

Presenting in front of 600 people is always a stimulating experience.  Especially when that audience also happens to be at TEDx, you know your arguments are probably going to be scrutinized a little bit more than at your average get-together. Last week I was a presenting participant at the TEDx in Barcelona.  TEDx works because … Continue Reading →

I was in mid explanation mode last week in a meeting with a senior director of one of the largest publishing houses in the world, who also happens to be a well-known journalist. During the presentation of what worldreader.org is doing, he exclaimed,  “At last, at last. Some good news I can finally associate with … Continue Reading →

Donated paper books are fine. They are sent by well meaning people and received (after overcoming the logistical challenge of getting them there) with dignity and gratitude. They fill up bookshelves and give the impression of a well resourced educational institution. Schools in developing countries like them. Well…. actually not all schools like them. In … Continue Reading →

I was at the big football game in Accra on Sunday afternoon.  The Hearts of Oak from the capital were playing the All Stars from Wa in the north of Ghana, at the recently constructed state of the art national stadium. I asked my neighbour why, in such an impressive setting with a wonderful modern … Continue Reading →

Today we started in earnest the first ever trials of e-readers in schools in Africa, and it is already clear that the acutely economically poor and humble children here in Ayenyah, are as ready to absorb this new technology as the kids we have worked with in Europe.  And the reason is they are increasingly … Continue Reading →