Acknowledge the presence of the following:

· Honorable Chairperson of the Provincial Legislative Standing Committee for Education, Mr Sonowabile Macotchwa;

· Honorable Superintendent-General of the Eastern Cape Department of Education, Mr. Jonathan Godden;

· Mr Mfeynana, Acting Regional Director (Northern Region)

· Others at the Head Table, managers, educators, and other education officials from regional, district, and school levels;

· Representatives from RTI (Richard Cartier and Team) civil society and particularly Ms Madonono and those from READ and the Education Trust Consortium who will help the DOE implement the Isithole Project;

· Welcome to American educators from the San Francisco Bay Area;

· Members of the media; ladies and gentlemen.

I greatly appreciate the opportunity to be here and to address you this morning. While I've been to the Eastern Cape quite a number of times, this is the first time I've been to Queenstown. I'd like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to travel across such an interesting part of the Eastern Cape and to meet with such a committed and distinguished group of educators.

I understand that the motto of the Isithole Project is "Excellence through Collaboration." It is both an honor and a pleasure for USAID to be working in collaboration with a Department of Education - like that of the Eastern Cape -- which is committed to this motto and to this kind of program. It is this kind of commitment and hard work that educators here in the Eastern Cape illustrate which ultimately determines the success of a project, such as this one.

The Eastern Cape Department of Education, like other provincial departments in South Africa, is confronted with the difficult but critical challenge of improving the quality of the education it delivers. But with the majority of the Eastern Cape's schools located in rural and less developed areas, educators here are faced with the even more daunting task of implementing the new curriculum and the assessment methods in widely-dispersed, less developed rural areas, many of which are in the two former homelands where the majority of the province's population resides. The Eastern Cape Department of Education is to be commended for having taken the courageous step of restructuring and decentralizing its department of education so that it will be able to more effectively support the poorer rural schools as they implement a new curriculum. Although this kind of change is never easy anywhere, it will be even more challenging here, and yet it is essential for improving the functioning of the education system, and providing the basic skills which the children of the Eastern Cape need, to realize their dreams and provide for their families.

As many of you are aware, the overall objective of the USAID-supported Isithole Project under the DDSP is to establish a model of educational improvement that can be replicated throughout the Eastern Cape and three other provinces. The project provides a holistic or integrated approach, which brings changes that will improve the individual schools, as well as district-level management and support of those schools. As such, there are important synergies between the Isithole reorganization efforts of the Eastern Cape Department of Education and the broader goals of the District Development Support Project. Both the DDSP and Isithole are premised on the belief that school-level change will not come about unless it is supported in a systematic way by the districts' education system, and in particular by the district-level managers. These new managers are key players, and without their full commitment to improving the schools, and their energy in carrying out these programs, they will not succeed. These initiatives support the empowerment and strengthening of district offices so that they, in turn, are better able to support individual schools. Isithole has also been designed to help empower other education managers, the school governing bodies, the teachers and the students, within the 98 target schools in the Eastern Cape. Thus, Isithole will support constructive changes to significantly improve the quality of teaching, learning and support services at the individual school level. These school-level changes that impact directly on the quality of education, and thus on the quality of children's lives, are outcomes we all seek and support.

In conjunction with the Isithole Project and the DDSP, USAID was extremely pleased to learn that the READ Educational Trust has been awarded the grant to work with the Eastern Cape Department to achieve common objectives. READ has been working to improve education in South Africa for many years. It was gratifying to hear that as soon as the grant was awarded, READ and the DDSP team in the Eastern Cape moved immediately toward implementation. This symbolizes the high level of commitment to the DDSP by the Department, by READ and by USAID's institutional partner, the Research Triangle Institute (RTI). It is clear that all stakeholders, the schools, districts, areas and head office, are fully involved and working toward the success of the project. I am confident that Isithole can make a tremendous difference for schools, educators and learners across this province.

The ultimate objective of Isithole and the DDSP is to help ensure that South Africa's children, its future leaders, are well equipped with the skills and ability to be highly productive citizens in the 21st century. At USAID we are proud to be one of your partners in the transformation of the Eastern Cape's education system. I do truly appreciate the magnitude of the challenges you face and it gives my staff and me great satisfaction to collaborate with you on this important initiative. I believe we are engaged in one of the most productive development partnerships that USAID has in South Africa-a partnership that produces results, and one in which we are very proud to play a supportive role with the Department of Education.

It's my pleasure to be with you today. Of all the provinces that we assist in South Africa, the Eastern Cape has provided the warmest welcome. While this province suffers immensely from a lack of developmental resources, the dedication and enthusiasm of its people are unparalleled, and we are committed to working with you here into the future.

Thank you.