The Beyond the Headlines programme on Freedom Square TV, anchored by Veteran Journalist and Publisher, Dr Uchenna Cyril Anioke, highlighted the crisis in Nigeria’s publishing and bookselling industry. Guest on the programme, Dr. Tony Akpokene, CEO of Flomat Books Limited, Convener of the Abuja Book Fair, and Public Relations Officer of the Booksellers Association of Nigeria (BAN), said the sector is struggling under soaring costs, piracy, and a declining reading culture.

Dr. Akpokene lamented that fewer than three percent of Nigerians actively read, describing the figure as dangerously low. He noted that bookselling is more of a calling than a profit-driven venture, recalling how he left a career at Shell Oil to promote education, inspired by his teacher-parents.

Reflecting on the recent Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Annual Conference in Enugu, which drew nearly 20,000 participants, he praised the organisers for creating space for booksellers, noting that lawyers remain among the most consistent readers with strong demand for law texts.

He, however, warned that piracy, high book prices, and overreliance on digital formats remain major threats, adding that e-books strain concentration and eyesight, while some advanced countries are returning to hard copies.

As BAN spokesman, Dr. Akpokene called for regular symposiums, government incentives, and stronger regulation of unregistered sellers. He also urged regional and international book fairs to rotate across cities and stressed that schools should patronize only licensed booksellers to curb piracy. “Books remain the bedrock of knowledge,” he concluded, “and only deliberate action can revive Nigeria’s reading culture and protect the industry.”