NexPage launches a nonfiction book summary Mobile application in the Philippines To Raise Literacy and Bolster Education

Education needs in the Philippines

The State of Philippine Education Report 2023 shared that there is an urgent need for transformative change in the country’s education system. Statistics revealed that 9 out of 10 children aged 10 years old were unable to read simple texts. 

In 2019, while 82.4% of Filipinos aged 25 and over have reported completing primary education, the completion rate for secondary education drops significantly to 30.5% for the said cohort. The completion rate for a bachelor’s or equivalent degree decreases even further to 24.4%. Only 19% achieved the minimum proficiency level of Overall Reading Literacy.

NexPage did some research of our own and attributed it to the following reasons:

A quarter of parents reported that their children are not learning adequately because of insufficient resources, financial difficulties, subpar learning environments, and a shortage of teachers to handle the rising number of students in public schools, despite efforts to offer students learning options that suit their circumstances.

The COVID-19 pandemic's abrupt arrival took the educational system off-guard and made already difficult problems worse. The lockdown measures put in place in 2020 exacerbated the disparities in the educational system, leaving more students behind and widening the learning gaps at all levels. Over a million pupils were unable to enroll when institutions were closed and blended learning was implemented in 2020.

The pandemic had a significant effect on the nation's workforce as well, with the unemployment rate rising to 17.7% by the beginning of the lockdowns. With employment and earnings becoming higher-priority issues, learning and development took a backseat.

According to a recent report by the World Literacy Foundation, the economic impact of the illiteracy issue is estimated to be P258 billion ($4.72 billion) annually. There is a direct correlation between literacy and income – literate persons earn an average of 30% to 42% more. To assist Filipinos to earn more, the long-term solution is to help raise their literacy level.

In addition, people who cannot read or write struggle to find opportunities to increase their earnings due to the absence of basic literacy skills needed for vocational education or training. The study also found that illiteracy led to lost earnings, limited employability, and lost business productivity.

At NexPage, we believe that education and knowledge can change the world. Education leads to economic, social, and cultural development, while knowledge opens up more job opportunities and can enhance the quality of life. With knowledge, we will better understand our history, the environment, technological advancements, and other specific subjects. Education is also the best tool to combat poverty.

With the NexPage mobile app, content, and services, we can do good for society and improve the lives of people all over the world.

Commenting on the mobile app launch in the Philippines, NexPage’s CEO, Tan Zhi Rong, said, “The Philippines ranked second highest in English proficiency in East and Southeast Asia, only behind Singapore. We believe that our English content will appeal to Filipino readers. Our book summaries are perfect for delivering key insights in minutes, saving time and money for the user. With greater knowledge and self-development opportunities, we can help improve the employability and income of Filipinos.

Having content already in Bahasa Indonesia, NexPage also plans to launch content in Tagalog in the near future, reaching out to more Filipinos who may prefer to read in their native language. Our end goal is to impart knowledge, encourage self-improvement, and ultimately, change and improve people’s lives. We look forward to working with the local government, schools, non-profit organizations, and other like-minded partners on this shared agenda.’’

NexPage offers a wide range of content, appealing to different audience segments. There are over 20 categories of book titles, including Business Management, Technology, Finance, International Bestsellers, Personal Development, Health & Wellness, Parenting, and Science, just to name a few.

Every week, NexPage also releases a free read of the week, where non-paying users can also gain knowledge and insights via this free read. Paid subscribers have unlimited access to all content and can also favorite titles to their personal library in the app.

At NexPage, we found that many people are interested to learn more about the books we discovered but don’t know the language or are unwilling to spend the time to read the whole book. 

As such, we gathered translators, editors, designers, and developers to extract the best ideas from those books and translate them to share with the rest of the world. We distill the best insights and key points from each book and summarise them into a 15-minute read, helping readers extract the best value using the least amount of time.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology is used to identify content categories and book titles that NexPage app users are searching for. Proprietary tech and processes also allow NexPage to publish a fresh, new book summary as fast as within 24 hours based on the user’s search behavior. AI is also deployed in in-app book recommender and marketing activities.

To cater to the audiobook market and users who prefer to have the book read aloud to them, NexPage has also made audio versions of its book titles available. Users can now listen to their favorite books on the go, jogging, at the gym, or while driving, allowing them to multitask with their hands freed up.

NexPage provides a wide range of features that allow users to customize their preferred reading experience. These include 'day' and 'night' reading modes, a selection of background colors to suit user preference, different reading font types, the ability to adjust font kerning and font sizes, a user-friendly book search function, a language selector, and more. 

You can also highlight, annotate and save your favorite quotes from the books. All your saved annotations will appear in 'My Library' so that you can view them all at once. With NexPage, you get the most pleasant reading experience that's visually pleasing!

NexPage believes that everyone should have the opportunity to gain knowledge and learn about other cultures without being limited by language or distribution barriers. We envision a world in which someone in the United States can get key ideas in English from a book originally written in Tagalog, and someone in the Philippines can get key ideas from a book originally written in English, Chinese, or even Korean.

NexPage is creating this world by producing high-quality summaries of the best nonfiction books from around the world and delivering them in the native language so that people can save time while reading in their preferred language. At this moment, NexPage’s product is unique in the market, and the Philippines has no close alternative.

When people can incorporate NexPage ideas into their lives, we assist them in their journey to become life-long learners and make the world a better place by sharing knowledge and ideas.

NexPage’s subscription premiums in the Philippines are currently priced at P149 for the monthly membership and P1490 for the yearly membership. The affordable rates allow for broader acceptance and adoption.

The NexPage mobile app is available in both IOS and Android formats and is searchable in the Apple and Google Play Store. Alternatively, you can also download the app here: https://linktr.ee/nexpage

NexPage offers a 7-day free trial when you sign up for an account. You can cancel anytime during the trial without any charges.

NexPage is the world’s first nonfiction, translated book summary app. More details can be found on our website (https://www.mynexpage.com).

NexPage's goal is to translate top-selling native, nonfiction books into English and other native languages and summarize them into digestible, quick 15-minute reads. The quick read will distill key insights and learning points for the reader to take away.

NexPage is a young start-up based in Singapore. Established in late 2021, it first launched its mobile app in June 2022. As of May 2023, NexPage has amassed over 10,000 mobile app installations worldwide with hundreds of active daily users. 

In Singapore, NexPage partners with various government agencies and higher institutes of learning to achieve common objectives in education, including Workforce Singapore, Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS), and the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) Global Education.