Iloilo opens library in the middle of a public market

It aims to help students who continue to struggle with reading proficiency.

At a public market in Iloilo City, you can get your karne and gulay—and your dose of Austen and Neruda, too.

Called Library sa Merkado, the new reading space sits in the dry section on the second floor of Iloilo Central Public Market. Its shelves hold children’s books, classic literature, and textbooks—with multiple copies of some titles available for readers.

The space officially opened on Aug. 28 and is open weekdays from 8 AM to 5 PM — with plans to extend operations to weekends.

City officials said it was designed to encourage children to read while accompanying their parents to the market, while also serving as a community learning space for adults in the area.

The opening comes as the Philippines continues to grapple with low reading proficiency among students. According to the Second Congressional Commission on Education, an average of 40% of learners in Grades 1 to 10 were classified as “struggling readers” at the beginning of School Year 2025–2026. By the end of the school year, nearly half of learners still had not reached grade-level reading proficiency.

The country is also facing a “learning poverty” crisis, or the inability to read and understand a simple text by age 10. In 2022, the World Bank estimated that 91% of Filipino children at late-primary age were not proficient in reading, based on 2019 data.

Library sa Merkado is the latest addition to Iloilo City’s network of public reading spaces, which already includes district libraries, barangay reading centers, and outdoor libraries. The city government said it plans to expand the initiative to more areas.

The project was launched through a partnership between the Iloilo City Government and the Zonta Club of Iloilo City, with assistance from the Technical Institute of Iloilo City.

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