Merely 3% of non-studes read books

"One book a day keeps illiteracy away," says a slogan of a leading bookstore.

This, however, seems to be not the case. National Book Development Board (NBDB) chairman Dennis Gonzalez cited a survey showing that only three percent of the non-student population — professionals, out-of-school youths and graduates — reads books regularly.

"This shows that there is not yet a book-reading culture in the Philippines, unlike in other countries," he said.

The NBDB, which is under the Office of the President, oversees the distribution and accessibility of books and other reading materials.

The survey had 1,200 respondents, 97 percent of whom admitted having stopped reading books after they left school.

Gonzalez said two possible reasons for this sad fact are the low quality of books that local publishers are producing, and the prohibitive prices of quality books. – Sheila Crisostomo