Our Story
EST. 2005
Beginnings
The African Library Project (ALP) was founded in 2005 by Chris Bradshaw and her family from Portola Valley, California. While her family was visiting remote villages in Lesotho, fondly known as the Mountain Kingdom, Chris found inspiration for ALP. Her curiosity about libraries in Lesotho was piqued through her son’s reading habit. Even while pony-trekking, she noticed her son managing to read during their journey.
When Chris asked about nearby libraries, the pony trekking guide’s response was not what she expected. To her surprise, the guide exclaimed that he only knew of one public library that was in the capital city, Maseru. Concerned with the obvious challenges of accessibility to books and libraries, Chris continued to inquire about libraries in Lesotho. She went on to learn that there was a significant interest in books and reading, but getting access to books was a challenge.
This quickly led to her reaching out to local schools to help with the process and was encouraged by their enthusiasm for helping and realized she could go from being a book drive organizer to organizing a nonprofit. In that first year, five libraries were created in Lesotho. And since then, ALP has created, improved, or sustained nearly 4,000 other small libraries in schools and communities across 13 countries in Sub Saharan Africa.
ALP’s emphasis on the need for a designated staff member (librarian) to manage a library’s operations was a component of our requirements from the beginning. The first library’s librarian was coincidentally a retired librarian, Maryann Eiseman (pictured left). Maryann, a Peace Corps Volunteer, has helped start five other libraries in the Malealea Valley in Lesotho.
FIRST LIBRARY
When I returned to the village where we rented our horses, the headman told me they had always wanted a library but didn’t know how to get books. There was no place to buy books in Lesotho, and the cost was prohibitive in nearby South Africa.
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CHRIS BRADSHAW
Bringing hope
Chris thought that if she could help bring books into Lesotho and if someone in the country could take the books to create and manage a library, this effort could bring hope and make an impact to alleviate poverty and illiteracy. So, Chris made an agreement to help send books if the creation and management of the library could be taken care of by someone in the country.
About six months later, Chris received news that the library building (pictured left is the original building) was nearly complete, so she collected and shipped the books.
MARYANN EISMAN, OUR FIRST LIBRARIAN
Shaping tomorrow
The African Library Project is building on decades of impact to shape an even brighter future. Our next chapter is about deepening partnerships, broadening the ways literacy comes to life, and working hand-in-hand with African-led organizations that know their communities best.
Together with our partners, we’re not only creating libraries, we’re equipping teacher-librarians with professional development, supporting schools with resources that strengthen learning, and opening doors to literacy in new and innovative ways. Book drives and the support that makes the shipments possible will always be a cornerstone of ALP’s story—and today, there are even more ways to help literacy thrive, from investing in teacher training to strengthening the operations that keep thousands of libraries alive across ALP’s partnering countries.
As we transition from our founder-led roots into this new season, ALP is guided by a shared vision—one that celebrates the power of partnership, the promise of literacy in all its forms, and the belief that every child deserves access to books and the opportunity to read, learn, and shape their future. The story of ALP is still being written—with new partners, new libraries, and greater access to literacy shaping what comes next.