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Social Development

New uniforms for disadvantaged learners

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 16:23

Pretoria – About 170 disadvantaged learners from the Eastern Cape were overjoyed as they tried on their new school uniforms on Monday.

The provincial Department of Social Development handed over school uniforms to learners in Greenbushes Township as part of the department’s Back to School campaign.

Senior Manager for the department’s HIV and AIDS programme, Linda Nombembe, said Greenbushes was identified as the area to host the campaign due to challenges facing local communities.

“Through door-to-door campaigns done by the department’s officials in collaboration with NGOs and other government departments, it was found that Greenbushes had many challenges that include high rate of unemployment, school dropouts and teenage pregnancy.

“Having identified all these challenges, we decided to visit the area to make an immediate intervention whilst we [as government] are still working on a long term plan,” said Nombembe.

Besides new uniforms, learners also received school bags, while their families received blankets, food parcels and mattresses.

Bunono Sangweni, one of the learners who received school uniforms, said: “I was different to other students, but I am happy that after today I will look like every other student at our school. - BuaNews