(Left) Livia Klosi, 13, and other girls read books in the library at Edith Durham Compulsory School in Tirana, the capital. “I like reading because I learn a lot from books,” Livia says. “I learn from the past and for the future. And what I like the most is that [books] enhance my imagination.” Livia’s school is one of the best in the country although its library, as in other schools, is inadequate. With support from IKEA, UNICEF has donated new books to the school through the ‘Albania Reads’ initiative.

In January 2008 in Albania, UNICEF continues to support a Government initiative with private sector partners, to promote reading among children. UNICEF is also partnering with IKEA, the Swedish home-furnishings retailer, on the initiative, called ‘Albania Reads’. IKEA has contributed 1 million euros (¬) to the programme, to help create school libraries. In the transition to a market economy in Albania, education quality and access fell precipitously, resulting in a generation of children growing up without books or the habit of reading. Recent surveys indicate that more than half of 15-year-old students in the country are unable to read at more than the simplest level; an estimated 56 per cent of families in the poorest, northern regions have no books at home; and schools have limited or outdated books inherited from closed public libraries. To help redress this situation, ‘Albania Reads’ was launched in 2006 to promote: the creation of school libraries, community reading corners; workshops for authors of children’s literature; teacher training; the setting of quality literature standards; and development of a magazine for children in the poorest areas. UNICEF is also working with the Government to develop new school curricula and standards for learning achievement, as well as supporting efforts to improve children’s literacy levels and promote a culture of reading. With support from IKEA, UNICEF is providing schools with new books that are age- and reading-level appropriate. More than 190 new school libraries have been established, with another 820 targeted for development.