Saudi initiative encourages reading while in self-isolation against Covid-19

Cairo: The Saudi Culture Ministry has launched an initiative aimed at encouraging people in the kingdom to read while staying home as part of stepped-up efforts to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. Saudi Arabia has reported so far a total of 2,795 virus infections including 41 deaths.

The initiative is based on diverse open reading and encourages people of different age groups to share their reading and quotes on an ad-hoc electronic platform, the Saudi news agency SPA reported.

Readers' contributions are divided into two main categories: one for child readers aged below 12 years, and the second for older readers.

The initiative, dubbed the "Reading Marathon" is meant for citizens and foreign residents in Saudi Arabia and aims, among other things, to register reading 100,000 pages per week, according to SPA.

The number of of read pages will be announced on a daily basis while the contributed quotes will be published on the related platform each week with a view to motivating people to make use of preventive isolation in boosting their knowledge and linguistic acquisition, it added.

The "Reading Marathon" is the latest in a series of cultural projects mounted by Saudi authorities including one related to drama writing and another scouting for cultural gifts.

Saudi authorities have repeatedly urged people in the kingdom to abide by anti-coronavirus measures including a nationwide curfew.