·In 1953, Nelson Mandela said, “…you must make every home, every shack, every rickety structure a centre of learning for our children.” 

·Fifty-one years later, his vision can be fulfilled, thanks to technology. 

·Mindset is leading the way. 

·Many years ago, scores of South African learners and educators were deprived of a decent education due to apartheid. 

·During that time, the United States Agency for International Development, “USAID,” supported South Africa’s development through educational scholarships.    We allowed many South Africans to study subjects in the U.S. they couldn’t access here in their own homeland.

·Since then, USAID has worked closely with South Africa’s legitimate government, promoting access to a good quality of education for ALL children. 

·We are proud of the many successes, because educating South African children is vital to South Africa’s future economic growth and lasting democracy.

·Past education policies discriminated against South African children because of race and gender.  So there are still many challenges facing education in this country, including lack of funds, teachers, classrooms, training and learning materials.

·Today’s agreement that we just signed between USAID, MINDSET and other partners from government, business, civil society and media, is a significant breakthrough to bring relevant and FREE education to South African learners and all that support them.

·The Memorandum of Understanding I am signing today on behalf of the U.S. Government through USAID will launch efforts to create an innovative Primary School Channel in South Africa. 

·Addressing Department of Education priorities, the Primary School Channel will strive to improve mathematics, science and technology to attract more participation from learners, especially girls. 

·Mindset is strongly committed to gender equity in all of its content production.

·The Primary School Channel is being designed with the needs of young learners in mind.  It will be interactive, thought-provoking and fun.  Relevant education will be broadcast to youngsters in languages they understand from the time they enter formal school through Grade 6.

·Mindset can go where learners and teachers often cannot, such as laboratories, factories and rural areas throughout the country. 

·Mindset will film outside the studio whenever possible to reflect the reality of rural children that they are trying to reach. Attention will be paid to health, nutrition, and physical development issues.

·The Channel will be made available initially to 50 primary schools in underprivileged South African communities and later to 20 economically disadvantaged schools in Kenya.

·Programs will be brought into the classroom via satellite broadcast television, print, and computer-based multimedia.  Content will be free of charge for participating schools.

·USAID has two ways of supporting the creation of the Primary School Channel.  The first is USAID’s Global Development Alliance that promotes public-private sector links around the world.  We strengthen this type of partnership so that governments, businesses and foundations unite together the best of their resources to fund and sustain common development goals.

·Mindset’s Network is an outstanding public-private partnership.  The Mindset Learn Channel and the Health Channel (the latter launched last year with USAID as a key partner) have marshaled support from the private sector in South Africa and the U.S. 

·USAID’s second source of funding for Mindset comes from the U.S. President’s Africa Education Initiative, launched in 2002.   

·African primary school enrollment and literacy rates are among the lowest in the world:  42 million school-age children in sub-Saharan Africa alone are not enrolled in any form of school. 

·Those who do have access to school often receive such a low quality education, they don’t acquire even the most basic skills of reading and writing. 

·To make matters worse, by 2005, it is predicted that 15 to 20 percent of teachers in sub-Saharan Africa will have died from AIDS*. 

·President Bush pledged $200 million over five years to support teacher education, develop learning materials and fund girls’ scholarships throughout Africa and Mindset is a recipient of some of that money.   

·Competent teachers are critical to effectively deliver quality education.  Part of President Bush’s plan promotes and expands innovative new methods for training teachers.  Mindset’s Primary School Channel does just that.  Teachers will be able to use Mindset’s broadcast and materials to stimulate learning in the classroom.

·USAID is a strong and committed ally in helping Africa pursue the best possible education available.  We look forward to working closely with Mindset, its founding partners and sponsors, the Department of Education, educators and learners as this design phase gets started.    

·The Primary School Channel is a powerful education tool that we believe will be immensely popular and beneficial across Africa.

Thank you.