The Netherlands is to contribute more than R69-million for the period 2007 to 2011 for a new literacy and numeracy research programme, it was announced on Monday.
On Tuesday the Dutch ambassador, Frans Engering, and the president and CEO of the Human Science Research Council (HSRC), Olive Shisana, will sign an agreement for the launch of the new programme.
The programme will contribute towards developing the capacity of the education system to ensure that children in South Africa complete a full cycle of good quality basic education by improving the literacy and numeracy skills of learners, it was announced in a statement.
The programme will be implemented in four categories — knowledge advancement, strategic research capacity and institutional and community support.
It will be conducted by a consortium of professional service providers to be led by the HSRC. The other consortium members are the JET Education Services, the Education Policy Consortium and the Project for the Study of Alternative Education in South Africa. These organisations are the leading experts in the field of literacy and numeracy research.
This agreement is a new and important part of the substantial contribution by The Netherlands embassy to promote education in South Africa, which has amounted to approximately R1,3-billion since 1994, the statement noted. — I-Net Bridge