Dushanbe, 26.04.2016. /NIAT “Khovar”/. First Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Tajikistan Rahmatullo Mirboboev and U.S. Ambassador Elisabeth Millard took part in a massive book donation campaign to commemorate World Book Day.

According to U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe, World Book Day aims to improve children’s access to books and to inspire a love of learning and literacy. It is the biggest worldwide celebration of books and reading and is observed in more than 100 countries all over the world.

To mark the day, the U.S. government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), donated 212,000 books for school children in grades 1-4 to over 1,800 public schools throughout Tajikistan. This donation is the first of two phases of books that will be donated by the U.S. embassy to Tajik public schools in 2016.

In the coming month, more than half of Tajikistan’s public schools will receive packets of 116 age-appropriate books, some of which were written and illustrated by local authors and artists directly funded by USAID.