(SINGAPORE, 2 November 2023) – The South Africa Mobile Library Book Donation Project organized by the Sony Group of Companies in Singapore celebrated its 14^th year in 2023, with a collection of 11,000 English language children’s books for South African children. Over 145,000 books have been donated since Sony in Singapore started supporting this annual sustainability project in 2008. The success of the project is due to the strong support from schools and the community, as well as Sony employees. The books will be shipped to Durban, South Africa in January 2024.

Here in Singapore, we have been engaging the local community in this meaningful project by inviting members of the public to donate books at Sony Store, 313@somerset. In addition, Sony continues to see strong participation from the schools, and we would like to acknowledge the following for their involvement:

• CHIJ Our Lady Queen of Peace
• Dunman High School
• Global Indian International School, East Coast Campus
• Greenridge Primary School
• Henry Park Primary School
• Lakeside Primary School
• Lianhua Primary School
• Nan Hua Primary School
• Pathlight School
• Raffles Girls’ Primary School
• Rulang Primary School
• Yio Chu Kang Secondary School

(Clockwise From Top Left) Dunman High School; Global Indian International School, East Coast Campus; Greenridge Primary School; Henry Park Primary School; Lakeside Primary School; Lianhua Primary School; Pathlight School; Raffles Girls’ Primary School; Rulang Primary School and Yio Chu Kang Secondary School.

Besides collecting books, participating schools were also involved in checking the condition and packing the books. This provided students the opportunity for project management and teamwork. Some students inserted inspirational messages into the books for the South African children. This creates communication between students in both countries and lends a personal touch to the whole project.

Since the project’s inception in 2008, the mobile library services have been expanded to cover all nine provinces in South Africa, with more than 53 mobile libraries in operation, reaching out to approximately 850 schools mainly in rural areas. For more information on Sony’s support for this project, please visit: https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/csr/ForTheNextGeneration/MobileLibrary/

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About the South Africa Mobile Library Project
Tad Hasunuma, former Managing Director of Sony South Africa, established SAPESI (South Africa Primary Education Support Initiative), a NGO based in South Africa, to conduct the mobile library project in partnership with the South Africa Department of Basic Education, with the aim of improving the literacy levels of the children in South Africa. The project acquires used mobile libraries from Japan to South Africa, where provincial departments of education operate them to provide the loan of books to children and teachers at local schools that do not possess these materials. The mobile libraries visit the schools and the librarians onboard advise teachers at the schools how to select the appropriate books and use them in their lessons. As a result, not only do the children gain an opportunity to interact with a diverse range of books, but teachers are also able to learn how to utilize the materials and maximize their potential. For information on SAPESI, please visit: www.sapesi.org.za/

About Sony Electronics (Singapore)
Sony Electronics (Singapore) is responsible for the marketing and sales of Sony products in Singapore. It also handles export business for Sony products from Singapore to various parts of Asia. Since establishing our presence in Singapore in 1973, we have grown steadily over the years to become a leader in the electronics market. For more information on Sony’s products and services in Singapore, please visit http://www.sony.com.sg/

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