(A case in support of local writers and publishers)

“You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.”
? Ray Bradbury

Some opinion leaders in Ghana have expressed worry about the lack of love for country, being the level of patriotism amongst a larger majority of the growing youth, which could be attributed to a multiple of factors. As the saying goes, you are what you read, and quite frankly, the destinies of countries have been shaped by the kind of education given to their children some fifty years ago.A clear example is China. There was a conscious plan to INDOCTRINATE the children with the vision of the country through the books they read at the basic level, so as to shape their mindset for the future. And for me, it is very worrying to observe that, about sixty percent of the books read by most government basic schools are authored by foreigners, with nothing about Ghana in it.I join in the belief that, if we are to win our youth back to work for the development of Ghana and stop the brain drain, it will not be through forceful means, excessive incentives and motivational packages, signing bonds not to travel after graduating, but through a conscious effort to build the love of and for Ghana in them. Over the last fifteen years I reviewed, the level of literacy amongst children at the basic school has been deteriorating faster than the hundred metres record set by Usain Bolt. So alarming is the problem that in 1998, when the British Government gave a grant of £53 million to the Ghana Ministry of Education to rehabilitate the basic education system, the Ministry decided to use £8.5 million to buy supplementary readers for the primary schools to revamp reading habits among children. In May 1998, the Ministry announced an invitation to submit titles for selection and purchase for the primary schools. Both local and foreign publishers like Macmillan, Heinemann, and Longman submitted titles for consideration. In December, orders were placed and publishers were asked to deliver their supplies by the end of March 1999. Some four million books were purchased including one million local language books. Sixty per cent of the books came from British publishers and 40 per cent from local publishers. But then again, it was clear that the Ghanaian publishers never benefited, and have never REALLY benefited from such opportunities at the ministry of education. The question is why? Could this just be another case of nepotism, selfishness, political considerations or total lack of patriotism for books written by Ghanaians for Ghanaians? BUT, as I pursue my fight for local publishers to be given more opportunities by government, I come across one book which made interesting reading. It was bread by those who went through basic school in the 1980’s.It had the title THE ADVENTURES OF DABODABO AKOSUA, authored by one Anokye Wiredu, published by Adwinsa publishers in 1982.As if to say that modernity caught up with the title DABODABO AKOSUA, the last time I checked it had striking similarities with the storybook titled THE UGLY DUCKLING (That am sure lots of you have read before), authored first in 1843 by Hans Christian Andersen. The book in summary, talks about Dabodabo Akosua, which literarily means Duck named Akosua, born with black feathers amongst other ducklings with white feathers. As a result of her different color black, she felt inferior, low self worth, disrespected and disregarded. Until she finds herself in the midst of some white swans who encourage her out of herself imposed, low self esteem and mental limitation, she couldn’t have discovered her abilities. Many Ghanaian literature lovers slammed the book, questioning its objective of how it encourages the black children in our basic schools, to change their perception about the supposed superiority of the white skin over the black skin. Could be a coincidence, but as striking and significant as it is to the argument, it is worth the reference.
Be that as it may, if we are serious and committed about the call to develop the level of patriotism and love for Ghana amongst the next generation, spell out the VISION FOR GHANA for the next ten years, we must take URGENT steps NOW, since it is clear we have lost the fight with many of the youth of today. Ghanaian authors and publishers must be given the first option of consideration, in the bidding for the supply of text books by the Ghana education service, provided they are able to meet the demand.
• Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
? Nelson Mandela
• “Change will not come if we wait for some other person, or if we wait for some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”
? Barack Obama

Authored by:
Dr Alfred Akrofi Ocansey (Honoraria Corsa)
Executive Director-Paradigm shifters Ghana
+233241272606
Email: alfredken214@yahoo.com