The American Ireland fund, a US-based charity, is to give $1 million to Sesame Street to produce 26 shows that teach tolerance to Northern Irish children.
The programme is part of Sesame Street's global outreach to politically troubled countries that has seen specially designed shows for children's television in Kosovo, Palestine and Israel.
Research conducted by the University of Ulster in 2002 found that many children in Northern Ireland as young as three years old have sectarian beliefs.
