World Book Day Celebration: Association of New Generation Authors Awards Young Writers

The Association of New Generation Authors (ANGA) joined the United Nations' Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, UNESCO, to celebrate World Book Day. Initiated by UNESCO, this day is annually celebrated on April 23, to promote the love of reading and the power of books. 

It aims to foster a reading culture highlighting the role of books in knowledge creation and to celebrate authors and the publishing industry. The day also serves to raise awareness about copyright protection and the importance of intellectual property. 

It is with this base setting that authors' associations and publishing houses have taken it upon themselves to join UNESCO in celebrating this day. In Cameroon, the Association of New Generation Authors has annually celebrated this day since its creation in 2023. 

That is why, on Wednesday, April 23, 2025, in Buea, capital of the Southwest Region, ANGA brought together at the cultural centre, people of different categories to celebrate this day under its peculiar theme: Read Your Way. Before this year's celebration, ANGA had launched an online poetry writing competition with 3 cash prizes for the winners. 

That is 25,000 FCFA, 15,000 FCFA, and 10,000 FCFA, respectively. Thus, the April 23 celebrations encompassed the following activities: a welcome speech from the President of ANGA, spoken word performances, dance, presentation of the theme, a debate and an award ceremony. 

The welcome speech delivered by the Secretary General, Mr. Marks Abaiko, who represented the president, centred on an emphatic call for an increase in the interest in reading, the importance of books and the necessity of growing the book sector by bringing the stakeholders of the book sector, like editors, publishers and authors, into one canopy. 

The speech of the president ended with a congratulatory message to those supporting Cameroonian authors by assisting in publishing and also purchasing and reading their books. 

The president's speech was followed by the presentation of the theme of the day: Read Your Way. The secretary general, Mr. Marks Abaiko, extrapolated on the theme by holding that the religious, political, economic and socio-cultural sectors are designed and regulated by books or knowledge from books. 

He continued that pastors and prophets are inspired and made from reading the book called the Bible, politicians get inspired by the works of Plato, Machiavelli, Sun Tsu and Robert Greene, while economists have been groomed from the works of Adam Smith and Karl Marx. 

In the same light, the socio-cultural sector has poets and novelists who have been crafted from the works of renowned authors like William Shakespeare. He concluded that what we desire to become in life, we should just read and create our way. 

His powerful presentation was proceeded  with by a public debate on the topic: Is social media reducing or increasing the reading capacity of Cameroonians ? This interesting debate topic had participants for and against. 

Those who were in the position of the fact that social media is increasing readership held that social media has created a space for abundant information, as it's less expensive to read books in PDF through social media; as a consequence, it has increased readership. 

While those Against held unanimously that social media causes distraction to so many youth who spend time either watching or making TikTok and Facebook videos for content creation. 

Therefore, it reduces the reading capacity. The debate session was followed by an award ceremony where cash prizes were given to 3 outstanding writers. 

Onela Kemta, the first winner, received 25000 FCFA with an additional 15000 FCFA from our partner and the Regional delegate of Arts and Culture. The 2nd winner, Victory Kalu, obtained 15,000 FCFA, while Lena Nwanja, the 3rd winner, went home with 10,000 FCFA. 

This event that was graced by the Regional delegate of Arts and culture, some founders of NGOs like our partner FAPS Development Organisation, students and media personalities ended at 7pm with light refreshments.

BY KNews special assignment reporter M.A 

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Cross section of awardees posed with members of ANGA members