The Guinea-Bissau Writers Association gathers dozens of people from different backgrounds who share the same goal: to improve the literature of a small West African country with one of the world's lowest literacy rates.
Writers Seek to Form National Identity Through Literature for Guinea-Bissau
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A poet and member of the Guinea-Bissau Writers Association, Rui Jorge Semedo, reads a passage from his book as he poses for a portrait, in Bissau, Guinea Bissau. (R. Shyrock/VOA)
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The president of the Guinea-Bissau Writers Association, Abdulai Sila, says its community is small, but that its members work to support each other and create dialogue that can forge a unified national identity of self-reliance. Bissau, Guinea-Bissau, Dec. 18, 2017. (R. Shyrock/VOA)
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A customer is seen at the Coimbra Bookshop in Bissau, one of the few places to buy books from local authors in the capital, in Bissau, Guinea-Bissau, Dec. 19, 2017. (R. Shyrock/VOA)
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A worker is seen printing on outdated equipment at the National Printing Press, in Bissau, Guinea-Bissau. (R. Shyrock/VOA)