Pratham Books responds to the primary problem in India that every second child in India cannot
read at her grade level. The aim is to introduce children to the joy of reading, by creating
engaging storybooks in multiple languages and formats, with locations they can recognise, and
characters with whom they can identify. The mission is to see a book in every child’s hand and
to build a more inclusive and joyful reading culture in India. Their work is done through
innovative solutions that are designed to help children in underserved communities get
increased access to reading resources.

What excites us about their work:

• Building a scalable model to disseminate books that are translated using an open-source platform and produced in keeping with children’s sense of location and place.
• Working through a pan-Indian network of actors to achieve maximum reach, through a cluster of activities from creating physical assets to technology platforms to enable access and engagement.
• Responding to literacy through the specific activity of reading which enables key developmental goals for a child
• Enrolling civil society actors to evangelise for the importance of reading and books and in translations helps build a vast discourse around the importance of reading