The Executive Director of Salt and Light Ministries, Dr Joyce Aryee, has called for the establishment of libraries in communities across the country to instil the habit of reading among Ghanaians.

She said reading can have a significant influence on the life of an individual for which the establishment of libraries to encourage the habit was necessary.

Dr Aryee made the comments at the Ghana Association of Writers 2016 congress held at the Pan African Writers Association (PAWA) House in Accra.

“The essence of reading and the power it has on one’s life cannot be overemphasised. We must establish and develop more libraries. The reason is simple: when we write, we will have books, and when we have books, we must preserve them. Where do we go to preserve books? We do that in libraries, and libraries are monuments that also represent historical sources of a people’s heritage and investment, and, therefore, investments in libraries send a clear picture of the mindset of a people,” she said.

She said because of the increased patronage of digital books, there has been a rise in the perception that libraries are of no importance lately, “but that is the farthest from the truth”.

“We must have libraries, except that our libraries must add the digital divide to what it has. But the physical books are also important. And we must have e-libraries as well, but physical structures as places of reading, which are visible, also remind people of the importance of writing and reading in the community,” she advised.

“Every community must have a library. If there is a school, there has to be a library.”