National Library Service - Soma Safari Project

Project Goal: $30,000

Current Progress: $25,900 (86.00%)

Embark on a Soma Safari – a “reading adventure” in Swahili – and help bring the joy of books and brighter futures to children in Nairobi, Kenya!

The Soma Safari project will establish six handcrafted Little Free Libraries in Nairobi’s hospitals, shelters, and schools, providing consistent access to engaging books for children ages 4-8. This crucial early literacy initiative is a powerful collaboration between the Kenya National Library Service (KNLS), Books for Africa, Knowledge Empowering Youth Libraries (KEY), Little Free Library, and San José State University's School of Information, working together to create sustainable book ecosystems that nurture young readers and instill a lifelong love of learning.

Given the recent generous donation over the weekend of August 23, 2025, we are thrilled to share that we have received a $10,000 anonymous gift and have raised our fundraising goal to $30,000. The increased goal supports the addition of an open access certificate school librarian program for Kenyan teachers and librarians, including $7,500 in instructor costs. This capacity-building program complements Soma Safari by training local educators and librarians to sustain high-impact school library services.

Thanks to your generosity, we have successfully raised the funds for the “door-to-door” delivery costs, including transportation to KNLS and essential customs clearance. This support will ensure that approximately 25 carefully selected, culturally relevant books reach each child. We are deeply grateful to Books for Africa supporters Thomson Reuters and Better World Trust for their early leadership. We’re also excited to share that Thomson Reuters has generously donated a law library as part of this shipment, which will be delivered to the Kenya National Library Service for a designated recipient.

With delivery now funded, our next two priorities are:

Completing funds for the Open Access Certificate school librarian program for Kenyan teachers and librarians ($7,500 instructor costs), and
Building the seed fund for next year’s shipment of an additional 80,000 books to Kenya.

Your contribution today will help launch the certificate program and jump-start next year’s 80,000-book shipment—expanding Soma Safari’s impact for students, teachers, and libraries across Kenya.

Soma Safari: Where every child's journey begins with a book. Growing readers, growing futures.