Proceso: Genaro Villamil
Out of 108 nations on UNESCO's index of reading, Mexico ranks second to last.
Mexicans read an average of 2.8 books a year, and only 2% of the population has the lifelong habit of reading, while in Spain people read 7.5 books a year and in Germany it is 12.
In Mexico there is only one library per 15,000 inhabitants and a bookstore for every 200,000, according to the National Reading Survey of 2012, cited by the Senate upon forming a commission to promote this activity.
In contrast, 41% of the population spends their free time watching television, the National Reading Survey says, while less than 12% spend it reading. Among young people 12-17 years old, 30% say they do not like reading, 61% that they "don't have time" and 48% say they have never been to a library.
On International Day of the Book, senators also warned that reading by the general population in Mexico declined from 54.6% in 2006 to 46% last year, which is to say that less than half of the population reads, and 40% have "never entered a library".
The coordinators of the Political Coordination Committee also warned that the activity of reading is the only one that can improve the education and civic training of Mexicans.
The Commission for the Promotion of Reading will consist of one senator from each political party and will focus on activities throughout this Legislature. Spanish original