The Eastern Cape will receive its first group of American Peace Corps volunteers this month. With the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) in early August between the US Peace Corps South Africa and the Eastern Cape Department of Education, the first Emergency Response Peace Corps volunteers will be stationed in the province.
The Eastern Cape will receive its first group of American Peace Corps volunteers this month. With the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) in early August between the US Peace Corps South Africa and the Eastern Cape Department of Education, the first Emergency Response Peace Corps volunteers will be stationed in the province.
The MOA was signed by Peace Corps South Africa Director McGrath Thomas and Eastern Cape Acting Supertindent General Ron Swartz. Premier Noxolo Kiviet expressed her gratitude for the mission’s assistance in arranging the signing of the MOA.
According to Elizabeth Trudeau, a US Peace Corps volunteer based in Pretoria, six volunteers will work at the Eastern Cape Education Leadership Institute in East London for nine months.
Two of these are maths and science curriculum development specialists, two are numeracy and literacy curriculum development specialists and two are organisation specialists. McGrath Thomas said: ‘‘We are so pleased to work in partnership with the Eastern Cape. These six initial volunteers will serve as technical experts for the Education Leadership Institute to design, develop and produce continuous professional teacher development and training materials, especially teaching and learning materials to promote improvement of basic numeracy and literacy skills, along with designing a mathematics and science training course.Peace corps volunteers fill a critical role to help South African educators connect to a global educational network.’’
Peace Corps is an American volunteer program that was formed in 1961 to promote global partnership and peace through three main goals: providing technical assistance; helping people outside the United States to understand US culture; and helping Americans understand the cultures of other countries.
Peace Corps has been present in the country since 1997. There are currently 158 American Peace Corps volunteers and trainees in the country who work in fields of education, NGO development and health, with a special focus on HIV/Aids.
