International Literacy Day was celebrated on Monday September 8th across Belize under the theme “Literacy and Sustainable Development.” In San Pedro Town, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports organized a book and storytelling day at the San Pedro Lions Den to coincide with other events countrywide. A delegation of students from each school was present at the event, whereby each school received a stock of reading materials donated from a school in the United States of America.
Guest speaker at the event was Senior Reporter of The San Pedro Sun Jorge Aldana. “Literacy is an essential human right tool that empowers a nation. It is a means for social and human development that opens the avenue of opportunities in today’s competitive world. Good literacy skills contribute to a person’s high self-esteem, better job opportunities, higher wages, and helps make a stronger and educated nation,” said Aldana as he stressed the importance of having a literate nation.
He also said that being literate impacts five important areas of a human’s life. “It impacts our economic well-being, aspirations, family life, health, civic and cultural engagement.” He added, “And as a nation, literacy is important to three main pillars to the country’s sustainability – it can help address the economic development issues, social development issues and environmental protection issues.”
After his remarks, Aldana joined the island’s National Drugs Abuse Control Council (NDACC) coordinator Kristina Romero in telling a story each to the students present. Romero told a story related to alcohol and substance abuse while Aldana shared a Caribbean Folklore story.
Following the ceremony, all of the schools present were given literacy materials to use at their respective schools. The books were donated by Martha Ortega, Assistant Principal at a school in Miami Dade Country, USA. The books were donated through the coordinated efforts of Tracy Eiley Gomez and Kristina Romero. A total of 55 boxes of books were donated and will all be distributed and used on the island.
The students also had the opportunity to visit a booth that was set up by the San Pedro Town Library in an effort to encourage more students to become library members. Other students opted to play fun reading games and had the opportunity to win fabulous prizes. The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports takes the opportunity to thank everyone who made the event a success.
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