A group in Sudan that helps thousands of war-displaced illiterate women improve family welfare, a Spanish movement tending the educational needs of immigrants from Africa and eastern Europe, particularly women, and a Mozambican literacy programme aimed at empowering communities have won United Nations literacy prizes for 2005.
The two 15.000 US dollar King Sejong Literacy Prizes awarded by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) went to the AULA Cultural Association of Spain and GOAL, a humanitarian organization working in Sudan.
The 15.000 dollar UNESCO International Reading Association Literacy Prize went to the Associacao PROGRESSO, a non-governmental organization (NGO) working for community development in Mozambique.
AULA, a neighbourhood movement in Palma de Mallorca, was chosen for the way its education activities have been tailored to suit a range of social groups, particularly women, immigrants from Africa and Southern and Eastern Europe, and young people without school qualifications or in danger of social exclusion.
GOAL Sudan was selected for its Womens Literacy Programme in Displaced Communities in Sudan. The programme has helped thousands of war-displaced illiterate women to improve family welfare and community recovery, reduce their level of illiteracy and enable vulnerable families and communities to better meet their needs.
It assists groups in identifying problems and taking basic actions such as road maintenance, creation of local markets and small shops in isolated areas, or the establishment of nursery schools, as well as developing income generating activities for households.
In Mozambique, PROGRESSO, has designed and implemented a literacy programme aimed at empowering communities, structures and networks in the provinces of Niassa and Cabo Delgado, by providing knowledge, skills and resources, placing great importance on the use of local culture and languages in all of its learning materials.
An international jury, appointed by UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura, selected the laureates from among 45 nominations. The prizes are awarded annually in recognition of particularly effective contributions to the fight against illiteracy, one of UNESCO’s priorities.
They call attention to the efforts of thousands of men and women who devote themselves year after year to advancing the cause of literacy for all.
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