Western Union launches MENA education initiative
Melanie May | 31 December 2015 | News
Western Union and the Western Union Foundation have announced the next phase of their Education for Better programme.
Following an initial three-year run of the initiative, which combines services, campaigns, cause marketing, employee engagement and philanthropic investment, the programme will focus on the education sector in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA), as well as elsewhere around the world.
This phase of the programme is due to run for five years and will provide education and job skills training to help foster economic opportunities for women and youth, and support families and communities in the MENA area. It will involve several initiatives including sponsorships, partnerships, donations, and advocacy.
Explaining the decision to move into the MENA region, Jean Claude Farah, executive vice president, and president of the Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, Eastern Europe and CIS, said:
“The combination of neglect, conflict, poverty, hostility, discrimination and mass migration is seeing alarming drops in the provision, quality and regularity of education. As a result, one in every four children and adolescents in the MENA region is either out of school, or at risk of dropping out.”
To date, the Western Union Foundation has provided than $104 million in grants and other giving to more than 2,918 non-governmental organisations in more than 136 countries and territories. It works with a number of global NGOs, and local non-profits and charities worldwide including UNICEF, Save the Children, Mercy Corps, and Pratham.
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.