A Message from the Chair of the Board

As we reflect on 2025, a key takeaway is that growth often stems from change. The African Library Project has been navigating significant transitions in our operations. We have striven to adapt internal processes and strengthen our strategic approach to build a more resilient and agile organization to take us into the future. Our goal of delivering on our mission to change lives book by book remains unwavering and a lasting legacy of that relentless focus is what we are determined to deliver. We understand that change can be a challenge, but it also creates opportunities for us to evolve and our vision remains sharp with great determination. We are ready to amplify the impact of ALP and know that our great community of support with volunteers, partners, and stakeholders.

I want to express my profound gratitude to every Book Drive Organizer, Container Manager, volunteer, and valuable African partners across Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda. You are truly the heartbeat of our project. Your belief in our mission remains so inspiring. The time, commitment, and care every one gives to driving our mission forward is exactly why we have delivered over 4.2 million books to our partner communities. We see your belief in the power of books to change the lives of young people is what keeps us striving forward. To our Book Driver Organizers, you remain the backbone of our mission. In 2025, your work mobilized local communities and friends, curated book collections with care, and that hard work sparked a love of reading for so many across our partner countries. With great compassion, your actions and steadfast commitment ensured that tens of thousands of books reached new readers and communities. We give our thanks to you all for your wonderful heart of service.

I also want to recognize our invaluable partnerships with our African partners. You are the hands and feet of bringing this mission to life at the grassroots level. We recognize your hard work, your expertise as you support our Teacher Librarians, and build stronger structures of literacy makes our mission delivery complete. I want to thank you for your partnership, your resilience, your patience, and collaborative spirit over the past year. Thank you for your enduring spirit to ensure every books reaches the hands of every child in every school library. We are truly honoured to work alongside you in delivering this vital mission.

For every child who gets to open a book for the first or hundredth time, discovering new worlds and possibilities; all our work is for them, especially as we strive for greater stability and sustainability. Together, we close the chapter on 2025 celebrating over 4,000 libraries since our inception, every milestone is owned by you our valuable partners and stakeholders.

We are excited for a 2026 filled with growth and collaboration.

With sincere appreciation,

Nontuthuzelo Nikiwe
Board Chair: African Library Project