A beating heart for Syrian children
On 25 September 2015 the United Nations adopted the definitive new objectives of Sustainable Development for 2030.
Companies are invited to use creativity and innovation to meet the challenges of sustainable development such as poverty, gender equality, water and clean energy, climate change, and last, but not least, education.
Sustainability also means using resources for social progress that goes hand in hand with economic progress.
Enel’s support to communities is not mere philanthropy; protecting people’s well being is part of the social role that the Group wants to have in the communities in which it operates. The future is a shared commitment; it is vital to start working today to lay the foundations for a better tomorrow, especially for the generations to come.
Taking care of children’s education and health, especially for those who experience the tragedy of war, is the first step.
In recent years, conflict and persecution have forced millions of people to leave their homes and seek refuge elsewhere. The need to provide education to children in crisis areas has never been more urgent.
The Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki Moon, has appealed to the UN Global Compact to focus attention on the plight of almost two million Syrian children who are either refugees or displaced.
Enel, with its Enel Cuore Onlus, was the first Italian company to respond to this request for help with a contribution of 500 thousand euro to the project "Educate a Child", run by UNHCR.
“It is a project that our company has chosen to support because it is in line with Enel’s values and its new approach to business and support to communities, particularly to the most vulnerable such as children, who lose the opportunity to study, in addition to being involved in a tragic situation. ”
– Angelica Carnelos, Counselor for Enel Cuore Onlus
Recently, we made an initial assessment of the program along with some representatives of the Leadership Giving Private Sector Partnership section of UNHCR.
“The project has so far enabled more than 30 thousand children to attend remedial classes, and many have had access to psychological counseling and therapeutic assistance. Thanks to the support of Enel Cuore, it was possible to form and strenghten the teaching staff, reaching over 360 teachers from the beginning of 2016. ”
– Laura Iucci, Leadership Giving PSP UNHCR Italy, Greece and Portugal
Since 2012, UNHCR is working with the program Educate A Child (EAC), which helps tens of thousands of refugee children to attend school in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
“In these years of endless conflict, education is the best investment you can make for Syrian children. ”
– Lionello Boscardi, Chief of Leadership Giving Private Sector Partnership (PSP) UNHCR Global
Educate A Child is a project born from the program of the Education Above All (EAA) foundation, which has as its main objective to ensure access to knowledge, and therefore the opportunity to change their lives for the better, to the largest possible number of children worldwide.
For more information on "Educate a Child", Please visit the UN Action Hub at "Featured partnership".