To mark the 21 days of Y’ello Care volunteer campaign employees at MTN Ivory Coast embarked on a project to teach at least 1,000 women how to read and write, using a mobile phone.

Each year mobile operator MTN Group launches a 3-week employee volunteer programme. And this year's project dubbed the “Y’ello ABC” is planned to run from 1 to 21 June across MTN markets in Africa and the Middle East.

According to a statement this week MTN Ivory Coast staff received lessons and tips from literacy professionals.

The statement notes, to enable ‘learners’ to join the digital revolution, literacy classes were specifically developed and delivered through the use of mobile phones, with emphasis on reading letters and interpreting numbers or figures.

The lessons will be conducted in local languages and French, it has been revealed.  

“MTNers will conduct lessons through short message service (SMS). In Ivory Coast, 51% of the people are illiterate and two-thirds are women. As MTN, we believe that teaching these women how to read and write will greatly enhance their ability to participate in the economy and improve their lives. The development and future of our country require building the capacity of women,” said Jocelyn Adjoby, general manager for corporate services at MTN Ivory Coast.

Other initiatives being undertaken in Ivory Coast as part of the Y’ello Care programme include developing an online knowledge share platform for teachers and an MTN Mobile University.  

Other MTN operations have also taken on the ‘Investing in Education for All’ theme for their Y’ello Care volunteer initiatives.

In Congo Brazzaville, MTN staff intend to install 21 libraries in 21 schools.

“In less than 5 days, we have already received over 3,000 books from MTNers. Our aim is to collect and purchase at least 23,000 books for these libraries, to help cultivate a culture of reading and discovery,” said Cyriaque Okoumou Ombolla, head of corporate services at MTN Congo.

In Zambia, this week MTN donated 10 computers to Edwin Mulongoti, Hillside and George Central primary schools in Lusaka’s Matero constituency, according to the statement.

MTN Uganda launched its fully kitted, state of the art MTN iInternet bus worth UShs 600 million.

Meanwhile, in South Africa, the MTN SA Foundation is hosting a half marathon on Saturday, 7 June, to raise funds for Y’ello Care activities. The marathon is open to all South Africans.