Road to Awareness 2010 supporting UNICEF’s education work in South Africa

Education enables individuals to make genuine choices about the kind of lives they wish to lead

Thanks to your support, next year 1,500 children in South Africa will receive a better education and improve their prospects for the future. Starwood’s funding will help UNICEF to improve conditions in schools and help guarantee that schools are safe and protective environments where children can realise their full potential.

This year, the 2010 Road to Awareness associate fundraising campaign aims to raise at least US $200,000 to support UNICEF’s ‘Schools for Africa’ project in South Africa. ‘Schools for Africa’ is a UNICEF programme that works in partnership with the Nelson Mandela Institute to accelerate access to quality basic education to 8 million children in 11 African countries.
The donations raised by Starwood associates in EAME will support Phase 2 of the Schools for Africa campaign in South Africa, including the following:

• Support for 1,500 orphans and vulnerable children in 5 rural schools to stay in school and complete primary education;
• Sport for Development activities in 18 schools across South Africa;
• Training for 70 teachers in child-friendly teaching methodologies (creating a safer and more caring school environment), and leadership training for 20 principals

Education transforms lives and breaks the cycle of poverty that so many children are caught in. When we ensure that children have access to quality education, we create a ripple effect of opportunity that impact generations to come. However, there are currently more than 100 million children worldwide out of school. Children are often denied the right to be educated because they are poor, orphaned or simply because they are girls or live in a remote rural area.

Background on South Africa

South Africa is the economic powerhouse of the African continent, yet 26% of the population lives on less than US $1.25 a day. Poverty and income inequality, HIV and AIDS and violence continue to undermine children’s well-being.

Today, there are over 3.5 million orphans living in South Africa; one third of these children have lost one or both parents to AIDS. UNICEF has come up with simple and effective interventions to make education accessible to every child, particularly orphans and disadvantaged children. Starwood’s funding will help UNICEF to improve the conditions in schools and guarantee schools are safe and protective environments where children can realise their full potential.  

Every donation you help us raise will make a massive difference. Thanks to the support of the associates of Starwood Hotels in EAME, next year 1,500 children will receive a better education and improve their prospects for the future.

Details on how to Donate