While Google Assistant is still looking for ways to make the story telling feature to come to Africa, an NGO has launched a mobile app to promote the reading culture among children aged between five and seven.
eLimu launched the Hadithi Hadithi app which has a compilation of over 200 stories written by Kenyan teachers and illustrated by various artists across East Africa.
The stories are also read by actors and celebrities such as Caroline Mutuko. The app is currently available on Google playstore.
eLimu Chief Executive Officer Sam Rich, said they decided to develop the application because grandparents no longer tell children stories to children as was the case in the past.
“We hope this app will help revive the African culture where children were told stories.The app already has over 200 stories. They include stories which the children can easily relate to, including about animals, schools and games,” said Mr. Rich.
The stories are in form of pictures and a narrator who describes them. At the end of each story, there are questions pupils are required to answer.The application also has a spelling competition and games for learners.
“So far, over 400 schools have benefited from this programme. Some have the app in three languages – Somali, English and Ugandan.”Alexia Sahara, the head of the business development at eLimu
eLimu is an eduction technology company that provides digital educational content in East Africa.