During his first visit to Bangladesh in his capacity as Crown Agents' chief executive, Terence Jagger saw first-hand how children are benefiting from the DFID-funded English in Action (EIA) initiative which Crown Agents supports through the procurement of a wide range of equipment.
Jagger visited a local college run by UCEP (Underprivileged Children's Educational Programs) which offers an education to children as young as 11 who cannot attend school full-time because they have to work.
UCEP runs classes in three shifts so that the children, who earn as little as 13 pence a day, can take a break from their work in factories, shops etc. to take lessons such as English which will help give them access to higher-skilled jobs and, hopefully, the chance of a brighter future.
The UCEP is just one of many projects supported by the £50 million EIA education initiative. Its aim is to provide English tuition to 25 million children and adults throughout Bangladesh. The project managers have enlisted the support of the Open University and the BBC to develop television and radio programmes for broadcast throughout the country, even using mobile phone technology to send mini-lessons by SMS.
Since 2008 Crown Agents has provided filming equipment for the BBC,computers, iPods and docking stations as well as vehicles for the EIA.
The audio technology is deployed in schools through the programme's innovative teaching and learning methods which are designed to complement existing government-led English lessons; this approach has proven highly popular and successful with teachers and pupils alike.
Jagger said that he found the visit "truly inspiring, seeing the children participating in the lessons with such energy and enthusiasm."