The Founder of Africa Literacy Development Initiative (ALDI), Victoria Michaels says literacy development must be the at the heart of societal governance, education and skills acquisition which is key to national empowerment.

According to Victoria Michaels, the support from well-meaning individuals and corporate organizations to complement government efforts at revamping the education sector, will effective literacy.

“The literacy narrative should not be reduced to mere political talk or some boardroom policy devoid of implementation; we must all now turn words into action in order to develop a rich and sustainable literacy environment,” she added.

She was speaking at a ceremony to hand over a two-unit kindergarten classroom block to the Headmaster for Afuaman Basic School in Greater Accra. 

The Africa Literacy Development Initiative -ALDI, a project launched by Victoria Michaels Foundation was launched three years ago to curb illiteracy in the rural areas.  The project focuses on transforming lives through proactive literacy developmental ideas.

The Headmaster for Afuaman Basic School, Mr. Michael Owusu, expressed appreciation to the ALDI for the gesture, saying that the commissioning of two-unit kindergarten classroom block for the school will help to reduce the challenges facing the school, including inadequate classrooms, classes under trees and absenteeism.

"We thank the Africa Literacy Development Initiative for the facility, which would remove a huge burden and impediment to teaching and learning in our school," he said and pledged his support in maintaining the facility to benefit the children in the community.

Mr. Owusu, however, appealed for more classroom blocks, computers, and a modern computer laboratory to enhance teaching and learning of Information Communication and Technology to help enhance the quality education of the pupils in the community.

The Victoria Michaels Foundation has so far commissioned school projects in both the Greater Accra and the Northern Regions of Ghana, and are hoping that in the next 5 years, they can together with their partners, deliver essential literacy and educational tools to at least 25 neglected schools and communities in all the ten (10) Regions of Ghana.

The Foundation is currently providing scholarships to less privileged individuals through the ALDI Scholar Program, its flagship scholarship intervention for brilliant children who are not able to further their education due to lack of financial resources at tertiary levels across six (6) higher institutions in Ghana.