Stakeholders in Nigeria’s education and publishing sectors have warned that the growing dependence on digital devices among children and young people is weakening the country’s reading culture.

The stakeholders urged parents, schools and government to take deliberate steps to reverse the trend. They spoke yesterday at the opening of the Fortham National Education and Book Exhibition in Abuja.

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC), Prof. Salisu Shehu, said the council had developed a National Reading Framework containing about 10 strategies aimed at reviving reading culture, particularly among younger Nigerians.

Shehu said the framework was accompanied by an implementation guide to ensure that the initiative translated into practical action. He expressed concern that children were becoming increasingly attached to digital devices, with many having little relationship with printed books.

“The poor reading culture is almost dead among our younger ones. With digital devices around and these younger children more attuned to these digital devices, you can almost say that they have almost a zero relationship with paper,” he said.

According to him, reading is fundamental to knowledge acquisition and national development, stressing that the effective implementation of the framework could help change the fortunes of the country.

Shehu also disclosed that NERDC had introduced a ranking system for books intended for use in classrooms, with only books that score at least 70 per cent in the council’s basic assessment qualifying for ranking.

He said the measure was designed to ensure that only quality books and educational materials found their way into Nigerian classrooms.

Event Director of the Fortham National Education and Book Exhibition, Msurshima Chenge, said the initiative was designed to bring together government, publishers, booksellers, schools, consumers and readers to promote reading and improve learning.