Full Length Research Paper
Diffusion of cultural knowledge
and issues of book publishing
and practice in central Africa:
The case of Cameroon
FONKENG Epah George
Abstract
Book publishing is an art
that consists of the
production and distribution
of ideas, of individuals /
group of persons based on
knowledge, experience and
research findings. It
participates in the
expansion and acquisition of
knowledge for better
understanding of the world
and its evolution. This is a
profession though
universally recognized and
promoted receives very
little importance in many
African countries and as
such most
readers/scholars/students of
countries concerned tend to
depend on publications from
other countries at the
expense of local ideas and
values. Publishing books and
other documentation
participates essentially in
the spread of knowledge. It
is a domain that most people
consider as reserved for
academics and intellectuals.
With limited facilities in
Africa, it is not so much an
area of great challenge as
many do not know what this
business entails and what it
takes to become a book
publisher. The absence of
facility for training in
this domain implies that
those already in it have
acquired the skills
informally. The market of
books remains significantly
problematic in most African
countries. Practice has
shown that anyone with the
financial wherewithal can
undertake to operate a
publishing house as a
private business in
Cameroon. Few publishing
houses that exist in
Cameroon survive on the
production of exercise and
textbooks for students,
which makes it seasonal.
Publications out of this
field in terms of
intellectual
debate/stimulation hardly
exist, procedure for
submission of manuscripts
tedious, proofreading
/editing almost absent and
consequently, quality is
poor and perennial
production doubtful. With
the existence of the new
Information and
communication technology,
will book publishing survive
or perish in a continent
that gives little meaning to
publication and reading?
Key words: Publishing
books, Practice, books,
Cameroon, Africa.
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