The Peace Corps in South Africa
he US Peace Corps was established in 1961 to promote world peace and friendship through the work of American Volunteers in social and economic development projects.
Worldwide, over 6,500 Volunteers in 80 countries are involved in projects in Education (39%), Environment (17%), Business (13%), Agriculture (9%) and other projects (5%). Currently an average of 2,200 Peace Corps Volunteers are serving in 28 African countries.
The mission of Peace Corps South Africa is to:
* Contribute to the on-going strengthening of South Africa’s human resource base, helping to educate and train learners of all ages.
* Enable Volunteers, through their service, their example and their diversity to increase South Africans’ understanding and appreciation of the people of the United States.
* Help the people of the United States, through the experiences and learning of the Volunteers to achieve a better understanding of and appreciation for the people of South Africa.
A brief history
Peace Corps South Africa grew from a meeting between Presidents Clinton and Mandela in October 1994. An official Agreement was signed December 5, 1995, making South Africa the 131st country Peace Corps has entered. Country staff and facility were in place in 1996 and, after negotiation with representatives of the National Department of Education and Northern Province, the first group of SA Volunteers were sworn in to serve in the Northern Province in May 1997, appropriately applying the traditional strengths of Peace Corps in education and community to the educational transformation goals of South Africa.
Our work
Volunteers are serving in rural areas in 2 Provinces – Northern Province and Mpumalanga. They each make a commitment to live and work for two years within the schools and community in which they are placed.
Through the Peace Corps’ School and Community Resources Project, Peace Corps Volunteers collaborate with South African educators and community developers to empower primary school teachers by strengthening their teaching and classroom management skills. Current educational emphasis is placed on improving the teaching of English, math and science in a curriculum based on the tenets of Outcomes- Based Education.
The Volunteers also act as facilitators, assisting in strengthening links between schools and their communities. Establishment of school and community libraries are examples of such linkage activities.
Other community-generated projects include HIV/AIDS awareness, sex education and life skills, environment
