South Africa, June 12 -- The initiative comes in response to the stark reality that 81% of Grade 4 learners in South Africa are unable to read for meaning, while 78% of public schools still operate without libraries. But it also signals hope: a united, focused and long-term drive to improve literacy across the country and change the story.

The Beyond Words Library and Literacy Project was officially launched at John Pama Primary School in Nyanga earlier this month, with South African actress and humanitarian Nomzamo Mbatha, who has had a long-standing relationship with the Cotton On Foundation and now leads the Nomzamo Lighthouse Foundation, present at the event. She was joined by author of children's financial literacy series, Gugu Sida...