2021 would be a National Year of Read Alouds---LAG declares 

Mr. Mathias Tulasi, the CEO of Literacy Ambassadors Ghana (LAG) has said 2021 would be a year LAG would be extremely aggressive towards inspiring life of reading among Ghanaians especially among school children and pregnant women.

He said reading alouds are essential for improving people's lives and promoting strong and sustainable economic growth in Ghana.

"Developing strong skills in literacy is critical to a child's success in early learning and beyond", he said.

Speaking on Avenor TV in an interview with Mr Komla Gbortsu prior to the Christmas celebration, Mr. Mathias Tulasi added that, literacy gives power to the individual to develop capacities for reflection, critique, empathy, and is core to personal well-being.

He said the establishment of Literacy Ambassadors Ghana as a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) is a wake up call to the literacy crisis that affects Basic School Pupils in Ghana.

"We are living in a paradox: while the digital age requires ever higher levels of literacy, thousands of Ghanaian Basic School Pupils continue to fail in reaching the mark" he added.

Mr Tulasi also mentioned that far too often, we assume that it is up to teachers, schools and government only to deal with issues of literacy. Yet precisely because literacy skills touch so many aspects of our social and economic functioning, a broad range of players have a role to play in promoting literacy and thereby reducing illiteracy.

He stressed on the need for parents to take issues of reading promotion at home seriously because according to him, the family unit is the key to the success of any family literacy program because it is through the family that the seeds of literacy grow.

In declaring 2021 as "National Year Of Read Alouds he made mention Literacy Ambassadors Ghana, will do everything possible to make sure it becomes part of every community in collaboration with other relevant key players within the education sector stating some of its benefits as; developing stronger vocabulary, builds connections between the spoken and written word, provides enjoyment, increases attention span, strengthens cognition, provides a safe way of exploring strong emotions and promotes bonding.

In his closing remarks, he thanked the host for the opportunity given him and indicated his readiness for subsequent interviews.

A reading nation is a winning nation. Let us all get on board in promoting the culture of reading among children. He said.