Recognition underscores NABU’s leadership in advancing mother-tongue literacy through technology
On April 2, 2026, NABU was awarded Best EdTech & Learning App at the 5th Edition of the Mobile App Awards in Nairobi, Kenya. This marks the third consecutive year NABU has been recognized, following previous wins in 2023 and 2024.
Organised by Vibrant Digital Africa, the awards celebrate mobile applications driving innovation, performance, and measurable impact across Kenya’s digital economy.
“This recognition is not just about NABU, it is about the millions of children who are finally able to see themselves in the stories they read,” said Camille Park, CEO of NABU.
“It reinforces our belief that when we build with language, culture, and access at the center, we can unlock learning at scale and create lasting change.”
Why This Recognition Matters
At its core, NABU exists to address one of the world’s most urgent and overlooked challenges:
400 million children in low-income countries are unable to read with comprehension. Nearly 40% of the global population cannot access education in their mother tongue.
For millions of children, the barrier to literacy is not ability - it is language.
This is not just an education gap. It is a human rights issue.
NABU’s model is built on a simple but powerful belief: children learn best in the language they understand.
A Scalable Model for Global Literacy
Through a 360-degree literacy ecosystem, NABU delivers:
- Mother-tongue and bilingual storybooks
- Mobile app and web reader access
- Audiobooks, print books, and video content
- Teacher training and community engagement
Today, NABU reaches children across 41 languages, working with local authors and illustrators to create stories that reflect the cultures, identities, and lived experiences of young readers.
The result is measurable impact:
- Increased reading engagement
- Improved comprehension
- Strong caregiver trust, with 87% recommending NABU to others
Driving Impact Through Partnerships
This recognition comes alongside significant milestones in NABU’s growth.
In partnership with the Basketball Africa League, NABU delivered multilingual storybooks promoting courage, unity, and identity to children across major African cities.
In Rwanda, Project Infinity, in collaboration with MTN and GSM Systems, expanded access to NABU’s platform in underserved communities, resulting in a 276% increase in reading time within five months.
These partnerships demonstrate how technology, when combined with cultural relevance, can scale access to literacy in ways traditional systems cannot.
Looking Ahead
Despite this progress, the work is far from done.
Hundreds of millions of children are still waiting for their first book in a language they understand.
NABU remains committed to reaching them - one story, one school, one community at a time.
Be Part of the Story
Join us in expanding access to literacy for children around the world. Support NABU: nabu.org/donate
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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