Vietnam’s community learning model honoured by Library of US Congress

An award ceremony was held at the headquarters of the Library of the US Congress in Washington, D.C. on October 18.

The Literacy Awards programme, sponsored by David M. Rubenstein since 2013, honours organisations that provide exemplary, innovative and replicable strategies to combat illiteracy. It has so far honoured 180 organisations from 39 countries around the world.

This year's awards were given to 18 organisations from seven countries, namely the US, New Zealand, India, the UK, Indonesia, Pakistan and Vietnam.

According to the LOC, Compassion Books is now a network of 19,597 bookcases or libraries in more than 3,000 schools and residential communities (in houses, community cultural houses, Catholic churches, Buddhist temples, shelters, businesses, hospitals and prisons, among others), providing quality reading opportunities for over 2 million readers in 60 out of 63 provinces of Vietnam and a number of schools in Laos.

Through House of Wisdom, Compassion Books established 146 lifelong learning spaces in 12 provinces of Vietnam and four other countries (Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand and Japan), helping more than 10,000 members, especially children and locals in poor, rural areas to have the opportunity for quality and free education.

Nguyen Thuy Hong, deputy ambassador of Vietnam to the US, said the Vietnamese Embassy will work to promote cooperation between Compassion Books and the House of Wisdom and other organisations promoting reading culture in Vietnam, and reading communities in both countries, contributing to enhancing their culture-education exchanges, and the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership.