Every year, UBA Foundation joins the rest of the world to celebrate the International Day of the African Child on the 16th of June. One of the ways the foundation does this is through its Read Africa Initiative which is carried out across major regions in Africa.

To this end, the UBA Foundation, throughout the month of June, visited several schools and conducted several Read Africa initiatives, donating books and other items to schools and orphanages in various African countries. Below are the beneficiaries.

Benin Republic: UBA Foundation paid a visit to the Complexe Scolaire Catholique d’Agatogbo on June 02, 2023, as part of activities to mark this important day. UBA Benin’s MCC Head, Didier Sourou, who led the team, explained to the students that the Foundation remains committed to improving lives in societies in which it operates, by creating dynamic educational platforms for future generations. He also advised them on the importance of taking reading seriously as the future of Africa depends on the youth.

Cameroon: UBA Foundation celebrated the event with Trinity Foundation Orphanage, Douala. The foundation did not only have a reading session with the children but also donated food items and gifts. During the Reading activity, UBA’s Head of Corporate Communications in Cameroon, Fointama Beizia, emphasised the positives of learning how to read and how it exposes readers to the world.

Mali: UBA Foundation donated over 1,000 free copies of Maryse Condé’s book “Ségou, Les Murailles de terre” to three schools: Ecole Fondamentale de Badalabougou, Ecole Amadou Sow in Hamdallaye and Dianguina Coulibaly school group in Lafiabougou.

Zambia: Hundreds of African literature books were donated to Kabulonga Boys Secondary School. The event was covered by multiple media outlets (Times of Zambia Newspaper, Phoenix FM, Hot FM, Millennium FM, QFM/QTV and Daily Nation Newspaper).

Tanzania: UBA Foundation Tanzania visited Edmund Rice Sinoni Secondary School with over 1,000 students, where the team had the privilege of interacting with students and giving back to society. In support of their education, the Arusha branch donated a collection of literature books to the school with a focus on broadening their horizons and encouraging a love for reading.

Côte d’Ivoire: UBA Foundation also donated books to several schools with the aim of promoting the reading culture among young Ivorians and providing them with quality educational resources. Among the beneficiaries of these donations were the Lycée Moderne de Yopougon Andokoi, the Réseau des Anciennes du Collège Notre Dame du Plateau and the Lycée Moderne Alassane Ouattara d’Anyama.

Sierra Leone: UBA partnered with the National Commission for Children (NCC) to donate several books to school pupils. Through this partnership, the UBA Foundation and the NCC are reaffirming their commitment to investing in the future of Sierra Leonean children and equipping them with the necessary tools for success with the aim of fostering the culture of reading. The Head of Marketing and Corporate Communications at UBA Sierra Leone, Sallieu Sesay, expressed the Foundation’s belief in the transformative power of education and emphasised the importance of promoting a reading culture.

Some schools which benefitted from this partnership included Saint Edward Secondary School, Prince of Wales Secondary School, Government Junior Secondary School, St Joseph’s Secondary School, Freetown Secondary School for Girls, Sierra Leone Grammar School, West African Methodist Collegiate, Methodist Girls High School and Government Secondary Technical School.

Congo: The team hosted an online quiz competition in celebration of the International Day of the Africa Child. The winners were presented with their prizes on the 16th of June,2023.

Nigeria: The team donated Read Africa items to different locations and schools in Nigeria. Items donated included novels, school bags, mathematical sets, notebooks and pens. The following locations were beneficiaries of the donation, North Central, Lagos State, Osun State, Ekiti State, The FCT, South East, Oyo State, Rivers State, Enugu State, Abia State, Anambra State.

Kenya: On the 23rd of June 2023. UBA Foundation visited Our Lady of Mercy Primary School, Shauri Moyo Area, a school which had been recording a number of dropouts prior to the visit. However, efforts by the team helped to give the students a fresh perspective on the need to complete their education. UBA Foundation partnered with them to help support their reading initiative and also educated the kids about their savings culture and what life has to offer to help them improve their education and living standards.

UBA Foundation is committed to improving the reading culture of children and young adults across Africa.