AFNA, organisers of the country's first Indie Book Fair for independent publishers held in Johannesburg in March 2015, is a not-for-profit entity committed to the development of a thriving local literature in SA. BASA is also a not-for-profit entity, which already has 173 members, including 120 black-owned SME bookshops across the country.
AFNA is developing a programme that will include membership-based lobbying power for independent writers, small publishers and distributors; NQF-rated training courses; subsidised publishing opportunities in exchange for author involvement in distribution; and a comprehensive national distribution network for small publishers and independent authors.
BASA is seeking a greater share of the book and stationery supply to schools. This will bring greater financial stability to BASA bookshops, thereby generating a retail network in previously under-resourced urban and rural communities that will be of huge value to South Africa's pursuit of a culture of reading and lifelong learning. It will also greatly improve on current supply systems which are susceptible to abuse and inefficiency.
Co-operation between the two organisations will take the form of joint proposals to relevant government agencies and a programme aimed at transforming BASA bookshops into exciting cultural centres that will feed into South Africa's nascent culture of reading and life-long learning.
For more information, go to www.africannarratives.org.za.
