The Ghana Reads Initiative, in collaboration with the Creative Arts Agency (CAA), is set to celebrate Accra’s literary heritage with the 2026 edition of Akra Reads!, a literary festival aimed at promoting reading and appreciation of literature.
The festival, scheduled for Wednesday, October 7, 2026, at the Korle Gonno Community Library, will bring together writers, students, readers and other literary enthusiasts for a day of activities celebrating books and the literary arts.
The initiative forms part of efforts to promote the book industry as an important component of Ghana’s creative arts sector, while encouraging a stronger culture of leisure reading among young people.
The Creative Arts Agency has expressed interest in the collaboration as part of efforts to establish Akra Reads! as an annual literary festival and eventually extend the concept to other regions.
Literary festivals provide platforms for promoting reading, cultural heritage and tourism, while creating opportunities for writers, publishers, booksellers and other players in the book industry to connect with audiences.
Akra Reads! is therefore designed to highlight the literary heritage of Accra while using books and literary activities to encourage reading and engagement with literature.
The 2026 edition will feature book exhibitions, reading activities and a students’ poetry contest, among other activities.
Highlights will include the Ladé Wosornu Students Poetry Contest, a pilot edition under the JUS initiative, Read n’ Chat with Linda Ampah, the Yumvita Read Challenge, Read n’ Bounce Experience and Blast a Balloon n’ Read.
The organisers expect more than 300 participants to take part in the activities, which will begin at 10 a.m.
Participation in the festival is free.
The organisers hope the initiative will help nurture a stronger reading culture while positioning Accra as a destination for literary and cultural experiences.
