Cape Town - As part of the Cape Argus’ collaborative book drive, representatives from the Homestead Project for Street Children and Independent Media gathered on Wednesday at a handover event for books donated by Jan Van Riebeeck Primary School.
In adherence with the current Covid-19 alert level 4 regulations, the event was only attended by Homestead Project director Nqabakazi Mathe, Khayelitsha Child and Youth Care Centre manager and social worker Ricardo Rossouw, and Independent Media’s marketing coordinator Rehana Rutti.
Mathe said the books would be distributed at their Child and Youth Care Centre in Khayelitsha to children that have been chronically neglected and endangered by their families or caregivers.
“These books will expose our children to new countries, worlds and cultures that they would otherwise never be exposed to in real life. We are hoping that through this donation, our children will be able to explore and widen their horizons,” said Mathe.
Rutti said: “Reading stimulates the imagination and expands the minds of children. It helps them develop language and listening skills and prepares them to understand and engage with the world around them. Every child needs to develop this skill.”
Jan van Riebeeck Primary School principal, Naas Beets said it was an honour to be a part of the book drive, and their school community pledged their full support to collect books for the drive and ignite education development.
“For many, a life on the street is the only way to survive, and a shocking statistic revealed that many on the street cannot read, which is very alarming. Therefore, Jan van Riebeeck Primary School wants to be instrumental in motivating all young kids to start reading and succeed in the educational system,” said Beets.
The Cape Argus book drive will continue indefinitely, working to help develop reading skills among children across Cape Town.
kristin.engel@inl.co.za
Cape Argus