A child is reading a book. Photo: Courtesy of the Chinese Board on Books for Young People

Responding to the call from Zhang Mingzhou, president of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), Chinese publishers, writers and illustrators are donating the international copyrights of children's books on COVID-19 to sections of the organization in other countries and translating the books into different languages for free for children across the world.

As a non-governmental organization with an official status in UNESCO and UNICEF, IBBY has been long committed to promoting reading among children worldwide since its establishment in 1953 in Switzerland.It is known for inaugurating the Nobel Prize for children's literature, the Hans Christian Andersen Award. Elected in September 2018, Zhang is the first Chinese to  assume the top post of the non-profit organization.

On behalf of IBBY, the organization's executive director Liz Page sent a letter to the Chinese Board on Books for Young People (CBBY) showing solidarity with the country during the COVID-19 outbreak back in February. 

"With long periods of isolation and quarantine, children are missing their friends and school colleagues. We want to support CBBY as they find novel ways to bring joy back to these lonely children." 

Upon receiving the letter, CBBY has carried out a series of activities to support children. "Since the outbreak, many publishers under CBBY have released various free digital illustrated books about COVID-19 for children on their public accounts on WeChat," CBBY told the Global Times.

Many sections of IBBY from around the world have shown support for China. Now it is China's turn to help children and their parents in other countries by sharing these books and enriching young readers' inner worlds through reading. 

"This will provide children with a better understanding of the epidemic and foster their interest in reading and help them become lifelong readers and learners," wrote Zhang.

Besides providing free digital reading resources to the public, CBBY has also launched an online reading program, which other countries can adapt as well. The reading program has seen the participation of more than 110,000 children. Through the joint efforts of 300 volunteers, reading materials such as poems are being shared among children and their parents through WeChat groups, where they can read and share their feelings with one another. Writers have also been invited to read children's books, followed by discussions online. The program is not just for children, there are also classes for parents and teachers on how to guide children in reading. 

Liu Dequn, a father and owner of a motorcycle repair store in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, has been volunteering for the online reading program and helping managing 40 WeChat groups. With his store temporarily closed due to the virus outbreak, he said "this is the best job I have done during the epidemic, and the best class for me as well."