Zambian Ambassador Praises Books for Africa, Headlines Fundraiser in Atlanta

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A Minnesota charity with the heart of its operation in Atlanta is changing futures by improving literacy in southern Africa, Zambia’s ambassador to the United States said in a Sept. 27 speech.

Chibamba Kanyama braved the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and left the United Nations General Assembly in New York, flying down early Friday morning as much of Atlanta was shut down to headline a fundraising luncheon for Books For Africa at the Buckhead Club.

That showed the ambassador’s dedication to an organization that sent its millionth book to his country of 21 million people this year. 

Mr. Kanyama, who also spoke in Atlanta last year, said the organization is filling a resource gap, noting that he recently returned to his own school in Zambia, only to find the same Encyclopedia Brittanica sets in use since the 1970s. 

Books, he said, are transformative not only for the content they provide, but also for the vision they ignite. 

“For many students, they provide a first glimpse into new ideas, new worlds and new possibilities. They offer a bridge between where these young people are today and where they can be tomorrow,” Mr. Kanyama said in remarks. 

Books for Africa aims to solve what it calls Africa’s “book famine” by populating under-resourced school libraries and sending specialized digital books focused on health care and other technical fields. 

The nonprofit takes donations of books at its Atlanta warehouse that are then sorted by volunteers. Once it has raised enough money to cover the shipping, it sends full 40-foot containers full of books across the Atlantic. Since 1988, the organization has sent 60 million books to all countries on the continent, including 1.15 million to Zambia. Last year, it sent 1.6 million books valued at $16 million to 31 countries. 

While executive Director Patrick Plonski was unable to make the trip down to Atlanta for the luncheon, founder Tom Warth praised the city for what he said was an unsung role in the St. Paul-based organization’s success. 

“Listen, we in Minneapolis, you know, we think that’s the core of books for Africa. It is not. It is here in Atlanta at the big warehouse. We do not give enough credit to our operation here,” Mr. Warth said. 

Among the various luncheon speakers wer board members like current President Tammie Follett and long-time volunteers including Perry Mitchell, who at more than 80 years old drives twice a week from his home near Emory University to the Books for Africa warehouse in Marietta.

An English literature major who’d traveled to Africa during his career, Mr. Mitchell said he has seen the organization as a tangible way to make an impact on the continent.  

“I believe educating girls and women in developing countries is the fastest, most efficient way to make the world a better place. Period,” he said to applause from the luncheon audience. “We men have been messing up the world for eons, haven’t we? So why are we still under-educating half of the world’s population?”

Fotemah Mba, a longtime board member and Atlanta recording executive who hails from Cameroon, said the city “shows up and shows out” when it comes to helping Africa develop. 

“I’ve been in Atlanta since 1991 and one thing I know about Atlanta — out of all the countries I’ve lived in in the world, Atlanta always leads the way. Atlanta is always influential when anything is happening,” said Mr. Mba, who served as master of ceremonies. 

Other remarks came from Jay Madden, executive pastor at Peachtree Presbyterian Church, who introduced the ambassador with a testimonial of Books for Africa’s importance from the church’s extensive work in Malawi along the border with Zambia.  

“I can remember years ago when I was talking with one of our students when we first got involved there, and I asked her if they had a library at her school. And she smiled and she said, ‘Yes, sir, we have a library, but there’s no information there.’ And fortunately, because of what Books for Africa is doing, and our partnership with them, there is information there now.” 

Mr. Kanyama, the ambassador, said the organization is in no danger of obsolescence, as “countless children” on the continent still await their first book.

“How can we expect a child to reach their full potential if they did not have, or do not have access to, the tools that they need to learn? This is where books for Africa has stepped in and has played an indispensable role in addressing these critical shortages.”