EDC to Expand Early Grade Reading in Mali and HIV/AIDS Education for Children in the DRC

WALTHAM, MA | The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has selected EDC to lead two significant projects in Africa—one in education and one in health—over the next five years.

As part of the Selected Integrated Reading Activity (USAID/SIRA), EDC will work to improve early grade reading and foster community support for literacy in the regions of Segou, Sikasso, and Koulikoro in Mali, areas where Bamankan is the predominant language. The $51 million project will also strengthen the capacity of the Malian government and Ministry of Education to foster sustainability. USAID/SIRA has three main goals: (1) improve classroom instruction in early grade reading; (2) improve service delivery systems; and (3) increase parent, community, and private support for early literacy.

EDC will work with several partners on this project: Save the Children, School to School International, the Institute for Popular Education, the Malian Organization for Support to Children in the Sahel, and CRC Sogema. The project was launched officially in May with a ceremony attended by ministry and government officials, EDC Vice President Nancy Devine, and project lead Thelma Khelghati. The ceremony was followed by a two-day workshop with regional education leaders.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), EDC will lead a new five-year $17.5 million project known as Enhancing Services and Linkages for Children Affected by HIV and AIDS (ELIKIA). The program, which will be implemented in 10 PEPFAR health zones in Lubumbashi and Haut-Katanga province, aims to improve the health, well-being, and economic security of more than 47,000 orphans and vulnerable children and 16,000 vulnerable households. The ELIKIA consortium will be led by EDC, together with partners Catholic Relief Services, the Palladium Group, and CARITAS DRC. EDC will be working to meet short-term needs and build longer-term resilience of children and adolescents affected by AIDS while strengthening social welfare systems to provide a coordinated continuum of care.

To learn more about EDC’s work in Mali and the DRC, as well as other countries where we work, visit the newly redesigned EDC website.

EDC designs, implements, and evaluates programs to improve education, health, and economic opportunity worldwide. Visit www.edc.org.