Cape Town pupils have easy access to libraries, but many of their counterparts in rural villages have never set foot in one. With the launch of a mobile library, the "Caterpillar" thousands of children at rural and farm schools will soon have access to reading material.

The first Caterpillar has been delivered to Tonko Bosman, a small primary farm school in Stellenbosch, where literacy levels among the 51 pupils is extremely low.

The Caterpillar is a 1,6m foldable library on wheels and consists of four hinged wooden racks, resembling a magazine stand. The racks can be folded open, and close into a box shape, making it easy for teachers to transport between classrooms.

June Baatjes, library adviser for the West Coast and Winelands Education Management District Centre, said the "Caterpillar project" had been initiated during the International Federation of Library Associations Conference in Berlin, Germany, last year.

Armed only with a sketch of the mobile library and funding to create just one, Baatjes enlisted the help of a carpenter who made the structure. "This is the first of its kind in the world," she said. "It is unique because you can keep on adding segments. It also does not take up a lot of space," explained Baatjes.

(Source: The Cape Argus 31 October 2005)