World Cup reading initiative starts in Uganda

The Monitor Publications through its flagship newspaper, Daily Monitor and its new partners will bring the 2010 FIFA World Cup to 250 primary schools in Uganda through a new World Cup project dubbed 'The World Football Reading Passport'. The football literacy project is an educational editorial tool that uses football to encourage young people to learn about journalism, sports, geography, language and character.

The reading passport will be delivered to Ugandan children through the Daily Monitor's Newspaper in Education (NiE) pullout. Through NiE, young readers explore the Daily Monitor newspaper through a booklet of exercises that can be used in schools or at home besides being used as a learning tool in the classroom for students and teachers.

Brian Mukisa, the marketing manager Monitor Publications, said the project is to run for eight weeks in June and July and will task the students to complete the weekly assignment that will give them the honour of signing a special World Cup certificate. The certificate will also be signed by football world champion Emmanuel Petit of France, also a former European and English champion according to Mukisa.

The project is expected to benefit one million primary school children who are part of the NiE project.