Send Books By Mail
If mailing books, please send book donations to:
THE YOUTH CAFE WAREHOUSE - NAIROBI
Kitisuru Gardens, Getathuru Road, Nairobi Municipality
how it works
1. Delivery of new or gently used books to our warehouse in Nairobi.
2. Our team of staff and volunteers sort and log the books into our warehouse inventory system.
3. Books are then selected for partners according to their users' needs, boxed up and shipped.
4. Our in-country partners receive the books and ensure they are allocated to the libraries in their networks whose needs they most closely meet.
5. Monitoring and evaluation of our book provision and project work is regularly undertaken by both Book Aid International staff and our in-country partners.
6. Every book we send is stamped to identify it as donated by The Youth Cafe Aid and ‘not for resale’.
DROF OFF BOOKS
NOTICE: Though books continue to be wanted and needed during the current Covid-19 Pandemic, drop-offs of small quantities of books (less than two pallets) will be handled in a way that complies with social distancing guidelines and limits the risk of Coronavirus transmission. Large drop-offs (two or more pallets) must be arranged ahead of time by calling the Nairobi (+254-0734-795-798) warehouse.
Books can be dropped off at our Nairobi location:
THE YOUTH CAFE WAREHOUSE - NAIROBI
Kitisuru Gardens, Getathuru Road, Nairobi Municipality.
Book Donation Requirements
The Youth Cafe accepts:
popular fiction and nonfiction reading books (soft and hard cover).
books that are 8 years old or newer.
primary, secondary, and college textbooks (soft and hard cover) published in the last 8 years.
reference books published in the last 8 years.
medical, nursing, and IT books published in the last 8 years.
some Bibles or religious books, please place them in a box separate from other donations and mark the box as “Religious texts.” Bibles are sent only when requested by African recipients.
School/office supplies—paper, pencils, pens, wall charts, maps, etc.
Acceptable books are gently used and relevant to an African reader.
If you mail books, please do not send boxes that weight more than 50 pounds and do not include any non-recyclable packing materials such as plastic bubble wrap or peanuts. The Youth Cafe cannot allocate funds for the mailing or shipping of book donations to our warehouses. This helps us keep our operating costs lower so that we can ship more and more books to students who need them.
Interested in donating law books? Get in touch with us to discuss the requirements.
Running a book drive?
We encourage Book Drive Captains to also collect money to help get book donations to The Youth Cafe warehouse. Please contact info@theyouthcafe.com for our Book Drive Media Kit to help with your book drive!
Honor a Friend
Show someone you care by giving the gift of literacy! Make an honouree donation to The Youth cafe on behalf of a loved one, and we will send an e-card or handwritten note to your honouree letting them know that books are on their way to an African classroom in their name!
Books For Africa does NOT accept:
Magazines or journals of any kind, including academic journals.
Home decorating or wedding books.
Cookbooks.
Ethnocentric books, such as the biography of Abraham Lincoln or the history of Manchester.
Foreign language books except for French books. French novels and dictionaries are welcome.
American history or civics.
Music books for K–12.
Murder mysteries or anything with “kill,” “die,” “murder,” etc. in the title.
Purchase books from our Amazon Wish List
You can purchase high-demand books to be sent to BFA for initiatives like the Girls' Empowerment Collection. Our Amazon Wish List lists books specially chosen to resonate with the beneficiaries.
IF YOU ARE A PUBLISHER
We only provide new, recently published books and, over 94% of these are donated by the book trade. These might be overstocks, returns or unwanted office copies. Thanks to the generosity of the publishing sector, we are able to send up to one million books to thousands of libraries, schools, hospitals, prisons and refugee camps every year. Find out more
Please contact us (info@theyouthcafe.com) or call +254-0734-795-798 to discuss the specifics of the books we need and how you might be able to help.
If You Are a Publisher in the usa
IRS special tax incentive rule known as section 170(e)(3) allows manufacturers and distributors to make donations of equipment and/or inventory to nonprofit tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organizations at a considerable tax advantage. Gifts can usually be deducted at cost plus one-half the difference between the cost (basis) and the fair market value (FMV). Deductions are limited to 10% of the company’s taxable income each year; excess donations may be carried forward.
As a book donor, you will receive:
an annual report on where your books have gone and how they have been used
a mention in our annual review
opportunities for news of your book donations to be shared on social media, to contribute content to our blog and receive content from us for your website, blog or internal communications
a quarterly e-newsletter
volunteering opportunities for staff to help in our warehouse
opportunities to attend publisher-facing events such as our quiz night
Certain categories of books are always in demand in the libraries we support. Please click here to help us meet the needs of our library partners. For further information and to donate books, contact us.
Other ways to get involved
In addition to donating books, many publishers also choose to donate funds.
The financial support we receive from publishers allows us to send books to the people who need them most around the world – including in South Sudan and the DR Congo – and enables us to refurbish libraries, train teachers and librarians and inspire young readers.
If you would like to discuss a donation, please don’t hesitate to get in touch by calling +254-0734-795-798 or emailing info@theyouthcafe.com.