To mark the 2025 World Book Day declared by UNESCO, Kano-based publishing outfit Fombina Imprints Limited is organizing an event themed “Crisis of Standards, Decline of Reading Culture, and the Challenges of Publishing in the Digital Era.”
The event, scheduled for Wednesday, April 23, 2025, will take place at Khalifa Isyaku Rabiu University (KHAIRUN) , Kano, and will begin at 10:00 a.m.
The celebration will include a symposium, two panel discussions, a book exhibition, and a book gifting session.
According to the organizers, the activities aim to encourage reading habits among youths, foster discussions around the role of books in education, and examine current issues in the publishing industry.
Speaking ahead of the event, Buhari Abba, the Public Relations Manager of Fombina Imprints, said the occasion is not just to celebrate books but also to raise awareness.
“This event is a wake-up call to confront the shrinking reading culture among young people, the threats to educational quality, and the survival of publishing in a digital world,” he stated.
The symposium will be chaired by Professor Lukman I. Diso of Bayero University’s Department of Library and Information Sciences. Scholars and experts expected to speak include Professor Asabe Sadiya Mohammed, Provost of Aminu Saleh College of Education, Azare, and Dr. Mohammed Aminu Aliyu from the Department of Economics at BUK.
Two panel sessions will offer space for further engagement. The first, chaired by Dr. Bilkisu Yusuf Ali of Al-Qalam University, will examine “The Challenges of Publishing in the 21st Century” with panelists such as Ado Ahmed Gidan Dabino, Kabiru Musa Jammaje, and Khalid Imam.
The second panel, chaired by Professor Murtala Muhammad of Northwest University, will address “The Challenges of Reading Culture Among Youths.”
Speakers will include journalist Ismail Auwal, poet and creative director Nasiba Babale, HumAngle reporter Aliyu Dahiru, and Sadiya Lawal Danyaro, a lecturer from the Federal University Dutsin-Ma.
Fombina Imprints will also donate books to selected schools, including Government Girls Secondary School, Shekara, and Usman International School, Gandu, Kano.
“Books are not just tools for learning; they are instruments of transformation. We believe in investing in young minds, and this book donation is part of our little way to support education in our community,” Buhari Abba added.
The 2025 World Book Day celebration by Fombina Imprints aims to bring together authors, publishers, scholars, students, and readers to reflect on the role of books in a rapidly changing world.
