APR 12, 2025
About NABU
NABU is a tech-enabled publisher of multilingual children’s books. We create culturally responsive, mother-tongue stories more efficiently and at a scale never achieved before.
Every child with equitable access to literacy by 2030
Globally, 250M school-aged children cannot read. According to the World Bank, higher literacy rates are associated with greater health, economic growth, and employment at the societal level. Early childhood literacy is critical to eradicating poverty, yet globally there is a severe shortage of books in mother tongue languages.
Guided by the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals, NABU exists to address a root cause of many of the world’s greatest societal challenges — illiteracy. We are building an inclusive, diverse, and widely accessible platform to make early grade level story books available to the 250M children most in need.
Our Impact
12M+
Children Served
2.5M+
Books Downloaded
1,200+
Titles Published
260+
Local Artists
From NABU Users
I used to be afraid of answering questions in class, but since reading on NABU I have become more confident. I love reading in Kinyarwanda, especially funny stories, like when the rabbit goes to steal wheat. I can now understand Kinyarwanda much better, and can share my ideas fearlessly!
—Belize, age 10
From NABU Users
Reading on NABU helps me understand my local language and also helps me learn new languages like English. I am always excited to share stories with my mom after reading and she helps me understand. NABU helps me boost my memory because I love memorizing the story!
—Oliver, age 6
From NABU Users
“I felt the urge to inspire my children to read because it increases the strength of the memory, and it teaches them daily life lessons. It has been one year since Warren started using the NABU app, and the changes I see are that he is now thirstier for reading than he was before, he gets excited when he knows I will be reading a story for him.”
—Niyonsenga
From NABU Users
“I really enjoy our story time every Monday. Every student gets a chance to go to the front of the class and read NABU stories through our teacher's phone. It's something that makes me very happy"
—Sibel, age 8
Donate
Your donation makes a difference. Join us in our mission to ensure every child has equal access to literacy and learning resources.
THE IMPACT OF YOUR GIFT
NABU is free for children, families, and teachers, thanks to our generous donors. Your donation can make a big difference:
- $25 monthly subscription for one child: Provide access to the NABU app and hundreds of bilingual books for a child and their family
- $45 monthly subscription for one classroom: Gift NABU to a teacher for use in their classrooms to support student learning
- $1,500 to publish a children's book: Support our professional development initiatives, training local artists to create culturally relevant stories for children in their communities, with translations into 25 languages
- $5,000 to sponsor a country-wide children's radio program:Expand our impact through storytelling radio programs across an entire country
To read is to rise
Accelerating Literacy Through Access to Mother Tongue Books
Mother tongue books are one of the most cost-effective interventions in increasing literacy, yet 40% of children globally do not have access to educational materials in a language they speak or understand. Increased access to culturally relevant, mother tongue books directly promotes higher reading engagement, leading to higher literacy scores.
Specifically, research shows mother tongue books:
• Increase a child’s motivation to read
• Result in stronger parental engagement in children’s education
• Provide an essential bridge to reading in English and other national languages
Help us to ensure that every child has free access to the essential books that they need to learn to read.
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We bring the wonder of reading right to your child's fingertips with bilingual, mother tongue books.
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