SAN DIEGO, Sept. 16, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Sony Electronics announced today the continuing participation in a national book collection program to benefit the South Africa Mobile Library Project, a part of the South African Department of Education's efforts to improve literacy levels across the country.

Sony has established an external support network of key recycling vendors from its Take Back Recycling program to enable public donations of gently used children's books around the country through the month of November. The project's recycling partners, its public collection locations and operating hours are listed on Sony's Trade-in and Recycling website, www.sony.com/ecotrade.

Collection duration: Sept. 16 – Nov. 16, 2013

Needed: English language children's books for elementary age to 14 years, including current children's reference books and encyclopedias.

Participating locations at: www.sony.com/ecotrade

Sony  companies around the world have been supporting the project since 2008. Sony companies in English-speaking countries, namely Sony UK, Sony Australia, Sony New Zealand, Sony Hong Kong, Sony Singapore, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Sony Canada, Sony Electronics, Sony South Africa and Sony Corporation of America called upon employees to donate English children's books. The Mobile Library currently carries over 125,000 books donated by Sony Group around the world. For more, visit http://www.sony.net/library/.

About "South Africa Mobile Library Project"

Joint project between the South African Department of Education and South Africa Primary Education Support Initiative (SAPESI) was established in 2005 as part of the Department's efforts to improve South Africa's literacy levels. 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 primary and middle schools that do not possess these resources.

The mobile libraries visit the recipient schools twice every school term (the South African school year is divided into four terms) to loan and collect books. Librarians travel onboard the vehicles, and 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.

About SAPESI (South Africa Primary Education Support Initiative)SAPESI is a South African NPO that has jointly overseen the "South Africa Mobile Library Project" with the South African Department of Education since the project's launch in 2005. Previously, the organization acted as an intermediary between the South African Department of Education and a Japanese NGO which used to send mobile libraries from Japan to South Africa. In 2007 SAPESI assumed responsibility for the acquisition and transportation of these vehicles from this NGO. It is a recipient of Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects from the Embassy of Japan in South Africa, and with support from the Society for Promotion of Japanese Diplomacy (SPJD) it continues to acquire and transport used mobile libraries to South Africa. SAPESI is also involved in the collection of books for use in the mobile libraries.

SOURCE Sony Electronics

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