Just last week we had a visit from Shaun Skelton, Executive Director of Visions In Action and Pat Plonski, Executive Director of Books For Africa where we  discussed ongoing collaborative opportunities.

Visions In Action is shipping seven containers of books to South Africa, Uganda, and Tanzania, with Books For Africa providing the books and Better World Books and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) providing funding.

“Better World Books is our number one funder, our number one source for college textbooks, and our number one source of visibility on some 800 college campuses across North America,” Plonski noted. “Their support has been critical to our success, and it was great to tour their facilities and meet their staff.”

–Always a pleasure Pat!  We’re so glad you do what you do.  Thanks for stopping by!

The momentum was unbelievable – there were two congresspeople in attendance, and an address to the audience recorded by none other than Kofi Annan, former secretary general of the UN.

Better World Books is still easily Books For Africa’s largest source of funding, and we presented them with a $95,000 check just to remind everyone. BWB delivers more funding (and a lot of books!) than they receive from OPEC, USAID, or the Minnesota Vikings, all supporters as well.

So Better World Books, be proud of every day you spend working. As Tom Warth, BFA’s founder says, “the children of Africa thank you”.

Many, many, many of these books are from Better World Books… The university [St. John's University, Dodoma, Tanzania] staff were extremely pleased with the books according to our BFA staff, and indicated great appreciation to the donors.  Apparently, the university was running the risk of being closed down by the government due to a lack of a proper library, so these books were critical to education and allowing the university to stay open.

Thanks.

Best regards,

–Pat

Patrick Plonski
Executive Director
Books For Africa

–Pat

THANK YOU!

Hhhhhhuuuuuuurrrrrraaaaayyyyyyy! shouted the teachers as the container reaches Sabu campus. Yesterday was a sigh of relief with great excitement to see the accomplishment of this historic project.  You must feel very proud that your goal has been achieved. We thank you for creating such an environment that will touch the growth of many lives.

You will receive letters and pictures from all the schools that will benefit from this resources.

We thank you for being a family we can always count on. We have been and will continue to works towards our commitment of educating the children.

Thank you all.

Samuel Thoronka
Sabu International School
Conakry, Guinea

[ed: The following letter is from Pat Plonski of Books for Africa to David Murphy, CEO of Better World Books, it talks about the exciting steps that BFA and BWB are taking to make more impact and make sure the money that you help raise is going to the right places!]

Hello David–

Just wanted to show you these latest numbers regarding the incredible impact being made by the Better World Books Fund of Books for Africa in just the last two and one half months. Including the container that we just sent yesterday to Ghana, the Better World Books Fund has leveraged the delivery of 13 containers of books (400,000 books) to eight countries valued at $2.3 million. We have shipped to Kenya, Tanzania, Guinea, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Algeria, and Ghana. Not bad for 12 weeks! The establishment of the Better World Books Fund has frankly transformed our shipping operation by allowing Books for Africa to leverage donations from individuals who cannot afford to pay for a full container, and by allowing us to ship to countries never before served by BFA. Book shipments at Books for Africa are up dramatically this fiscal year, and are in fact on a track to increase by at least 50% over last year.

So that’s the latest. Shipments are way up in large part to the Better World Books Fund. About half of our shipments over the past 12 weeks have been in collaboration with Better World Books. Of course, those regular payments designated for unrestricted funding (which we receive from you on a monthly basis) to underwrite our ongoing operations are also coming in very handy.

Thanks much for all you and the Better World Books team is doing. We expect to reach our goal of shipping 20 million books to Africa next year and our collaboration with BWB has been a key element in our success.

–Pat

Patrick Plonski
Executive Director
Books for Africa

Help End the Book Famine in Africa! View the BFA Story

Check out the following letter from Pat Plonski, Executive Director of Books for Africa!

Hello everyone–It is my honor to inform you that Books For Africa has just signed a memorandum of understanding with Visions in Action to ship 25 40-foot seacontainers of textbooks to Liberia.  This agreement will provide for the shipping of between 875,000 – 1,000,000 textbooks (550 tons) valued at approximately $4 million over the course of the next 12 months.  Books For Africa history.  This agreement with Visions In Action stems from a meeting I held in Monrovia with Visions in Action in January of this year where this concept was established.  USAID is also playing a role in the financing of this project.  I will be traveling to Liberia in October or November of this year as part of a Books For Africa / Better World Books delegation to meet with Visions In Action, and Liberian government officials, and other key players to formally initiate this project. Thank you everyone for your great support of Books For Africa.  This is exciting news.  The need for books of all types is very great in Liberia and this is an opportunity to help rebuild this country and give hope to the people there.

–Pat

Patrick Plonski

Executive Director

Books For Africa

Subject: Container to Kenya
Hello -

I am pleased to inform you that a 40-foot container of textbooks left our St. Paul warehouse today bound for the port of Mombasa, Kenya for distribution in that area of Africa.  Funding for a 20-foot container was provided for this container; BFA has utilized $1k from the Better World Books Fund to defray shipping costs of boosting this to a 40-foot container.

Thank you for this support of education in Kenya!
-Pat

This is just the first of a number of shipments that will be sponsored by the newly-formed Better World Books Fund – this 40-foot container holds about 35,000 books! Stay tuned for more BWB Fund updates.

Representing Friends and Alumni of KU at the ceremony were Dr. Leah Keino and Dr. Ebby Luvaga of Iowa State University, Dr. Jane Rose Njue of Northern Illinois University, Dr. Agnes Odinga of Hamline University, and Dorothy Rombo (faculty on study-leave from KU) of the University of Minnesota, who have all been actively involved in this project since October 2006. Also present were Wilfred Pere, and James Wakiaga, First Counsellor at the Kenyan Embassy.

Here is a short clip of Tom Warth, discussing Books for Africa’s mission and the partnership with BWB.