The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on the 10th that three organizations have been selected as recipients of the "2025 UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize": the National Literacy and Languages Office of Senegal, the Institute for Research, Education and Promotion (INEPE) of Ecuador, and the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) of Thailand.
The Ministry established the "UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize" in 1989 to honor King Sejong's spirit of creating Hangeul, which enabled everyone to easily learn and use spoken and written language, and to support UNESCO's global efforts to eradicate illiteracy. The award has been supported since 1990. Initially, only one recipient organization was selected, but this increased to two in 1995 and to three in 2021.
This year's award ceremony was held on the 8th (local time) at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France, in celebration of International Literacy Day. Each recipient organization received a prize of 20,000 US dollars, a certificate, and a silver medal. The Ministry stated that starting next year, the prize money will be raised to 30,000 US dollars to further enhance the honor and prestige of the award.
The recipients of the "2025 UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize" took a commemorative photo at the award ceremony held on the 8th (local time) at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France. Photo by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism
The National Literacy and Languages Office of Senegal was recognized for its "Literacy Program for the Visually Impaired," which converts native languages into Braille (a tactile writing system invented by Louis Braille of France in 1824, allowing the visually impaired to read and write with their fingers). This program helped visually impaired individuals acquire reading and writing skills in Braille, as well as arithmetic and digital skills.
The Institute for Research, Education and Promotion of Ecuador was honored for its "Literacy Program to Foster Critical Awareness and Care for Life and the Earth," which promotes literacy and digital skills among children and youth through participatory, intergenerational learning within the community. The program strengthened digital literacy among children and youth, and enhanced critical thinking, environmental awareness, and cultural identity.
The National Science and Technology Development Agency of Thailand implemented a "Program to Bridge the Literacy Gap for Students with Disabilities," providing various media such as electronic publications, sign language interpretation, subtitles, and audio descriptions through a central digital platform. This initiative contributed to ensuring that students with disabilities have equal opportunities to improve their literacy skills.
In celebration of the 579th Hangeul Day, the Ministry plans to invite representatives from this year's recipient organizations to Korea, where they will be introduced to both traditional and contemporary Korean culture and share King Sejong's spirit of creation with the world. The representatives will attend the Hangeul Day celebration ceremony and visit major cultural sites in Korea, such as the National Museum of Korea, the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Cheonggyecheon, and Tongin Market.
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