Sesame Street Indonesia

As part of President Bush’s six-year, $157 million initiative to improve education in Indonesia, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has signed a major new partnership with the New York-based Sesame Workshop to develop and produce an Indonesia-specific version of the Sesame Street children’s television program. This four-year, $8.5 million program is one of the largest partnerships between USAID and Sesame Workshop. The Indonesian co-production of Sesame Street will strengthen school readiness for millions of children throughout the archipelago; and will contribute to the Government of Indonesia’s efforts to strengthen Early Childhood Education and Development. 

The first season, consisting of 52 thirty-minute episodes, will debut in 2007 with newly-created Indonesian Muppet characters, locally produced original music, live action, and animation films, and classic Sesame Street segments featuring Elmo, Cookie Monster, and the rest of the Sesame characters. Two more seasons will roll out until 2010.

Sesame Workshop is starting pre-production for the USAID-funded series – designing and developing the Indonesian program in cooperation with an Indonesian production company and broadcaster yet to be determined. The initiative engages Indonesian educators and child development experts in creating relevant and age-appropriate content and will introduce children to simple concepts such as letters and numbers. The series will also address issues specific to the region such as encouraging young children to protect the environment and appreciating the diversity of their surroundings. A curriculum seminar will commence in July 2006 to determine additional educational goals of the series. The television series has not yet been named.

The Sesame Street Indonesia program builds upon the successful cooperation between USAID and Sesame Workshop in designing and producing Sesame Street programs in other countries such as Egypt, South Africa, Russia, Bangladesh, and India. Sesame Workshop is a nonprofit educational organization making a meaningful difference in the lives of children around the world. Founded in 1968 (previously known as the Children’s Television Workshop), the Workshop changed television forever with the legendary Sesame Street. Today, the Workshop continues to be innovative on behalf of children in 120 countries using its proprietary research methodology to ensure its programs and products are engaging and enriching. The Workshop’s proven model draws upon the best practices of the U.S. experience and utilizes this expertise to strengthen host-country capabilities and reflect host-country cultures and traditions.  Find the Workshop online at www.sesameworkshop.org.

All Education activities