The TV presenter and magazine boss' Angel Network charity funded the Seven Fountains Primary School in the remote KwaZuluNatal province and Winfrey jetted to South Africa to attend the opening ceremony yesterday morning (16MAR07).
The new school is an environmentally friendly institution Winfrey hopes will become a model for public education in
The school's water supply will come from recycled rainwater and the institute's energy will be provided by solar power. Farmland surrounding the school will also be used to grow vegetables, which will be harvested to feed the children.
She handed out clothing, books and teacher-training materials for the new institute's 1,000 students and staff.
The $1.6 million (£820,000) features 25 classrooms, a library and a landscaped playground.
Oprah launched her first South African school, the