People’s Action Forum wins UNESCO Award

People’s Action Forum (PAF), one of the member organisations of the Zambian programme, received on the 8th of September the “UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize 2008".

The recognition was well deserved, after eight years of hard work in literacy in rural and vulnerable communities. The prize comes with 20,000 USD.

The news was received with great joy at the PAF Lusaka offices via a phone call of UNESCO’s director general Koichiro Matsuura.

Since the prize was awarded mainly for the efforts of the PAF branch in Mazabuka, it was Janet Nyoni, Area Coordinator for Mazabuka, who travelled to Paris to receive the prize and bring it back to the Nega Nega community in Mazabuka District.

Jennifer Chiwela , PAF Executive Director, and the UNESCO representative handed over the prize to Jane Chisanga, Mazabuka Chairperson, during a remarkable ceremony at the Nega Nega Capacity Building Learning Activity Center on the 3rd of October.

Kristien Van Camp (Volens’ Regional Coordinator) and Evelyn Moreno (Volens Development worker at PAF) attended the ceremony.

Quoting PAF’s Executive Director, Jennifer Chiwela: "In PAF literacy programs we look at empowering people with knowledge beyond reading and writing. PAF also provides them with education about discrimination and stigmatisation and aims at breaking some misplaced myths about HIV/Aids".