The United States government, in partnership with the Government of Malawi (GOM), reached another milestone in the Secondary Education Expansion for Development (SEED) project, awarding construction contracts to two firms to build 38 rural schools across nine districts in Malawi. The contracted firms are Dika Construction, a firm of Malawian origin, and Bozdemir, a firm domiciled in Turkey. Groundbreaking for these construction projects is expected this month. Once operational, the schools will expand education access for 9,000 Malawian youth in rural areas.

The SEED project is a $90 million partnership between the U.S. government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), and the GOM to improve education and health outcomes for Malawian youth, targeting adolescent girls and young women. The project has two components—SEED Urban and SEED Rural. Through SEED Urban, the U.S. government successfully constructed and handed over to the GOM 96 classrooms in 30 urban schools in Blantyre, Zomba, Lilongwe, and Mzuzu. Through SEED Rural, the U.S. and Malawian governments will construct new secondary schools in rural areas, creating up to 40,000 new seats across the country.