2009 News Archive

Borlaug Fellows Take Home New Knowledge

December 10, 2009 South Africans from the Norman E. Borlaug International Agriculture Science and Technology Fellows Program recently completed their studies at the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources. The fellows will now go home to implement what they have learned. The program is operated by the US Department of Agriculture.
FIFA's Football for Hope Center opens in Khayelitsha

December 7, 2009 FIFA’s first Football for Hope Center opened December 5, one day after the World Cup draw, in Khayelitsha on the outskirts of Cape Town. U.S. Ambassador Donald Gips, and Consul General Dr Alberta Mayberry, joined FIFA's Joseph Blatter and local dignitaries to celebrate the opening of this PEPFAR supported program.
Taking a Stand Against Violence Against Women

December 7, 2009 USAID sponsored Western Cape Network on Violence Against Women (WCN) form a human chain outlining a white ribbon, symbol of the “16 Days of Activism Against Violence Against Women” campaign.
Graduating English Access Microscholarship Students

December 2, 2009 Ambassador Gips yesterday awarded 59 certificates of achievement to graduating English Access Microscholarship students. The Embassy's Access program in South Africa offers two years of after-school English study to secondary school students in Mamelodi, Pretoria, Alexandra, Soweto, PE and Kayamandi.
US Ambassador Gips and US Diplomatic Mission Observe World AIDS Day

November 30, 2009 Ambassador Donald Gips of the United States Diplomatic Mission to South Africa hosts a pre-World AIDS Day Voluntary Counselling and Testing Event for diplomatic and local employees of the U.S. and other diplomatic missions in Pretoria.
16 Days of Activism

November 25, 2009 Each year since 1991, tens of thousands of activists from every region of the world have taken part in the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence Campaign. The campaign’s central messages – women’s rights are human rights and violence against women constitutes a violation of human rights – have been a rallying call of the women’s movement.
Underwater Explosives Countermeasures Course

November 20, 2009 Consul General Jill Derderian, "The ATA program is one important way that the U.S. government provides partnership and support to advance peace and security."
The Story of Barack Obama

November 16, 2009 South African author and academic Dr. Mukanda Mabonso Mulemfo who has just published his latest children's book, ‘The Story of Barack Obama’, visited Abassador Gips at the US Embassy, donating a number of these books to the U.S. Government. Several of the donated books will soon be in the Mission's libraries which serve South African communities.
New Consulate, New Art

November 9, 2009 A recently installed collection of American and South African art greets staff and visitors at the newly constructed the U.S. Consulate General in Johannesburg, providing a visual exploration of the human bond shared by the United States and South Africa.
Ambassador Donald Gips and his family's day in Langa

November 7, 2009 Ambassador Gips and his family spent the day in Langa, one of the oldest townships in S.A. They visited Siyaphambili orphan village and later the Love Life Center. They saw performances of traditional dance, took part in group discussions, and presented books for Siyaphambili’s after-school reading program.
San Juan makes historic visit to South Africa

November 4, 2009 Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS San Juan (SSN 751) pulled into Simonstown, South Africa, Nov. 4, setting the stage for a series of first-ever, at-sea engagements with the South African Navy submarine force. The San Juan was escorted to the Simonstown Naval Base by two South African subs,the SAS Charlotte Maxexe and the SAS Queen Modjadji.
American “Citizen Ambassador” Librarians Visit South Africa

October 29, 2009 Former American Library Association President John Berry led a delegation of 23 American librarians on a 10-day tour of South African libraries in October. Under the auspices of the People to People Ambassador program (started by President Eisenhower), the group visited academic, public and research libraries in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Cape Town
Issues of Child Prostitution and the 2010 World Cup

October 23, 2009 US Fulbright Professor Susan Kreston was the featured speaker at a major roundtable discussion on this issue. She aims to assist stakeholders in understanding the risks leading up to, and during, such a major world event, and what protections are afforded under the new Sexual Offences Act...
Sharing Legacies of the Past

October 14, 2009 A photography exhibition, bringing together for the first time ever the works by two renowned photographers, Alfred Duggan-Cronin and Edward Curtis, opened October 14, 2009 at the Centre for African Studies on the campus of the University of Cape Town.
Ambassador Gips Visits North West Province

October 7, 2009 Ambassador Gips visits the children of Tsholofelo, a children’s services project funded by an Embassy community grant. Tsholofelo, one of the Grant recipients in the Mafikeng area, offers preschool education to 84 children, provides home-based health care to some 500 patients, and visits another 300 children in their homes.
Tree Planting at the Mae Jemison Science Reading Room

September 15, 2009 High school students help plant the “Tree of the Year”, an acacia galpinii, part of the US Embassy Mae Jemison Science Reading Room's program commemorating international ozone day and arbor week and raising awareness of the environment and climate change.
Reading Text Books for Cape Primary School

September 16, 2009 American Reading Specialist and her daughter, a Special Education teacher in Cape Town, have spent the last two years building the library at Kleinberg Primary school in Ocean View, just outside of Cape Town. The most recent goal was to get the school reading textbooks...
Food parcels to the Al Noor Orphanage during Ramadan

August 28, 2009 The US Consulate in Cape Town donated food parcels to the Al Noor Orphanage August 28. The food parcels were put together by consulate staff from donations given during the first week of Ramadan by consulate employees.
Congress visits Cape Orphans

August 22, 2009 A U.S. congressional delegation visited Siyaphambili Orphan Village, in Langa on the Cape Flats to hear about the project’s work and to interact with the children who regularly come to the village.
Secretary Clinton meets President Zuma

August 8, 2009 "He gave his views on regional issues from Zimbabwe, Somalia and Sudan. His advice on these issues was extremely helpful," Clinton said. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is in South Africa, stage two of her seven-nation trip to Africa
Secretary Clinton Revisits Cape Townships

August 8, 2009 Secretary Clinton visited two Cape Town townships on Saturday to see homes built by the South African Homeless People Federation.
Young Scientists Chat with Astronaut

July 29, 2009 Fifty Mamelodi high school students talked with American astronaut Daniel Tani via webchat on July 29 at the Mae Jemison U.S. Science Reading Room. Tani was at his home in Houston when he responded to students’ questions about his experiences as a NASA astronaut.
Dream Destination USA

July 24, 2009 Sibulele Mjingwana, 16, a Grade 11 pupil at Port Elizabeth‘s Walmer High School, had one important stop before catching a plane to the United States: the American Library in Pretoria. Sibulele spent several hours reading about the country he was about to visit for three weeks, after participation in a program sponsored by the US Embassy.
Oprah's Girls

June 22, 2009 These girls from the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls visited the new U.S. Consulate in Sandton where they received a guided tour of the art on display, part of the Art in Embassies Program, a global museum that exhibits works by U.S. citizens.
News from the Mission

June 11, 2009 Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Demetrios Marantis visited South Africa June 8- 12 to represent the United States at the World Economic Forum in Cape Town. He also met with South African Minister of Trade and Industry Rob Davies to discuss ways to strengthen US-SA trade and investment relations.
US Men’s National Soccer Team Practice Session

June 11, 2009 The United States Men’s National Soccer Team, currently in South Africa for the Confederations Cup, and the U.S. Embassy in Pretoria co-hosted more than 300 children and caregivers from different community partnership projects at an open practice session.
Obama Message to Muslims

June 4, 2009 On June 4, 2009, President Obama delivered his promised address to Muslim communities around the world. He announced a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world based on mutual interest and mutual respect. US Embassies and Consulates in South Africa hosted screening and briefing events
Personalized Training for Agriculturalists

May 18, 2009 Fourteen South Africans will soon travel to the United States to participate in Cochran Fellowships, personalized two to four week agricultural training programs sponsored by the United States’ Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service.
Helen Sung and NuGenerations

May 15, 2009 Helen Sung and her jazz band, NuGenerations, were on tour as part of the Rhythm Road program run by the Lincoln Center in New York and funded by the US State Department.
Books for US Funded Christel House School

May 14, 2009 Consul General Alberta Mayberry visited the newly opened Christel House School to donate books and meet students and faculty. The school offers free education to selected students who fall below the poverty line.
U.S. Presidential Delegation to South African Inauguration

May 9, 2009 The President has asked Ambassador Ron Kirk, the U.S. Trade Representative, to represent the United States at the inauguration of the President of South Africa on May 9th in Pretoria.
Supporting Grassroots Soccer

April 30, 2009 Participants in Khayelithsa in the Grassroots Soccer program, funded in part by the United States government’s U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) program. Grassroots Soccer has reached more than 300,000 young people with life skills and healthy habits.
Students to Study at Community Colleges in US

April 29, 2009 PRETORIA: Fifteen young men and women selected from various South African Further Education and Training (FET) colleges will soon depart for the United States to spend one year studying at Community Colleges under the auspices of the United States Department of State.
Clean Water and Sanitation

April 16, 2009 More than 10,000 South African learners, teachers, and community members will gain access to clean, abundant water and sanitation through an international Water and Development Alliance (WADA) supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and The Coca-Cola Africa Foundation (TCCAF)
Peace Corps Volunteers

April 2, 2009 The Community HIV/AIDS Outreach Project, launched in 2001, has hosted more than 150 Peace Corps Volunteers at local organizations across the country. In a special swearing-in ceremony on Thursday, April 2, 25 Peace Corps Volunteers took the Oath of Service and pledged to work for the good of the people of South Africa and the United States.
Reducing violence, crime and incarceration among young males

March 23, 2009 Dr Joseph Marshall Jr, founder of the Street Soldiers and the Omega Boys Club programs in the US, was in Cape Town, March 23-28, 2009 to meet with a South African group, the Ubomi Youth Foundation, which is using his methods to reduce violence, crime and incarceration among young males in the Western Cape.
Actress Jurnee Smollett Visits in Support of HIV/AIDS Initiatives

March 22, 2009 Young actress and civil rights and HIV/AIDS activist Jurnee Smollett visited South Africa spending much of the time with members of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal organizations involved in struggle against AIDS, sharing her experiences and delivering her message of hope and empowerment in workshops and presentations.
Rosa Parks Small Business Corner

March 10, 2009 JOHANNESBURG: Consul General Andrew A. Passen opened the Small Business Corner at the Rosa Parks Library in Soweto. About 120 of Soweto’s growing entrepreneurial class attended the event, and toured the book collection and internet computer terminals available at no cost to local business people.
English Language Scholarships for Grade Eights

March 13, 2009 Twenty Grade 8 learners from Ribane Laka and Somafco secondary schools received microscholarships for two years of language instruction using books, materials and activities jointly chosen and developed by the Getting To Know English Center and the U.S. Embassy.
Women of Courage

March 11, 2009 On International Women’s Day – the same day that Secretary of State Clinton hosted an event for the winners of the 2009 International Women of Courage Award in Washington, the US Consulate Cape Town hosted a lunch to honor South Africa’s nominee and runner-up for Africa, Sweetness Mzolisa.
Students at Mae J Township Students “Do” Science

March 4, 2009 Top Grade 11 students were treated to a hands-on demonstration of the chemical properties of polymers, and the explosive nature of hydrogen, at a workshop at the Mae Jemison U.S. Science Reading Room.
NOT ALONE – An International Project of ‘Make Art/Stop Aids

February 24, 2009 There is only one thing worse than intense physical and emotional suffering, and that is suffering alone. By gathering a chorus of artistic voices emanating from Brazil, India, and the United States, this exhibition demonstrates that South Africa is not alone in facing the enormity of the AIDS epidemic.
Celebrating the Opening of the South African Parliament

February 11, 2009 S. A. Minister of Education Naledi Pandor received a traditional Hawaiian greeting when she arrived at U.S. Mission-hosted reception in honor of the opening of the South African Parliament. Also honoring President Obama, this year’s chosen theme was “Hawaii”, the state in which he spent his youthful years.
Human Evolution at the Mae Jemison U.S. Science Reading Room

February 11, 2009. Biology students packed the auditorium in the Mae Jemison Science Reading Room to hear a presentation on human evolution. Afterwards, they lined up to become members of the Reading Room, adding to the growing number of school children who are delighted by the books, magazines and Internet resources offered at this US Embassy sponsored center.
Robert G. Bradley Drops Anchor in Cape Town

February 2, 2009 The Frigate, USS Robert G. Bradley docked in Cape Town during a training mission that is taking it around the coast of Africa. Crew engaged with members of the SA Navy and community, playing sport, giving concerts and, performing community service.
Ifa Lethu Art Exhibition

January 29, 2009 The exhibition opened in the US Embassy January 28 and is part of South Africa’s “Heritage Month” and features art created by approximately 30 students from previously marginalized communities.