Masifunde Sonke: Let Us Read Together
South Africa Partners is proud to announce its latest education initiative, Masifunde Sonke: Let Us Read Together, which promotes children’s literature from the new South Africa as a way of engaging a new generation in the joy of reading.
SA Partners convened a committee of educators and community leaders to select the children’s books for the initiative. All books are written and illustrated by South Africans, exhibit literary excellence, and incorporate themes of justice, hope, and renewal.
For each book purchased in the United States, SA Partners donates a book in the purchaser's name to a school in South Africa. In this way, the initiative addresses the need for access to books and library materials in South African rural and township schools, stimulates economic development, and also increases opportunities for cross-cultural learning between children in the United States and South Africa.
The goals of the Masifunde Sonke book project are to:
- Increase literacy and a joy of reading among students in rural and township public schools in South Africa
- Foster an appreciation of South African children’s books in the United States
- Facilitate contact and exchanges between South African and U.S. schools, educators, and learners
- Stimulate economic development in South Africa through purchasing books directly from South African publishers
