Pictured above: HSBC Group Chairman Douglas Flint and HSBC Malta CEO Mark Watkinson with staff members who will be visiting Ghana

A group of six HSBC Malta volunteers will soon be visiting projects in Ghana where WaterAid, as part of the HSBC Water Programme, is working to improve access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene. As an international non-government organisation (NGO), WaterAid works with some of the poorest communities around the world to provide long-term water and sanitation solutions.

During the weeklong visit, scheduled for November 2013, the HSBC team will travel to districts in the Northern and Upper Eastern regions of Ghana. The group will be visiting established WaterAid projects to see the difference safe water, sanitation and hygiene have already made to individuals, communities and local economies. As part of  its work, WaterAid aims to reach 120,000 people with safe water and 80,000 people with sanitation in Ghana.

HSBC Malta CEO Mark Watkinson said: “The HSBC team will experience the very significant difference that WaterAid is bringing to Ghana. Employee involvement is an important element of HSBC’s sustainability initiatives as it allows our people to participate and see the outcome of their own work.”

Claire Pearson, HSBC Water Programme Manager at WaterAid, said: “The support to WaterAid from HSBC Malta has been extraordinary. They are the first HSBC country to commit to raising funds for a new project for the HSBC Water Programme, planned for 2014. They are also a pioneer of the first WaterAid Volunteer Speaker Network outside of the UK. It’s incredibly exciting to work with such an enthusiastic team and they are really setting the standard for others to hopefully follow.”

“What the group of representatives learn and experience in Ghana will inform and enrich the talks they give as WaterAid Speakers to their colleagues, community groups, schools and businesses on their return.  We’re really looking forward to showing the group what an incredible difference the HSBC Water Programme is making to the lives of people in Ghana.”

The group of HSBC representatives, will be led by Stephen Pandolfino, HSBC Malta’s Deputy Chief Risk Officer, and will include HSBC Malta’s Edward Cachia, Graziella Grech Borg, Paul Curmi, Raymond Cassar, and Samantha Hollyoak.

With the support of HSBC Water Programme, WaterAid will reach 1.1 million people with safe water and provide better sanitation for 1.9 million persons over five years in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Ghana and Nigeria.  More info is available via the HSBC Water Programme website at www.thewaterhub.org. In addition, one can email speakers@wateraid.org to request a WaterAid speaker for a free talk for your community group, school or business.

The HSBC Water Programme is a five-year, USD100 million programme, in partnership with widely respected non-government organisations (NGOs) – WWF, WaterAid and Earthwatch, delivering a powerful combination of water provision, protection and education; resulting in the most ground-breaking water programme committed to by a financial organisation.

Meanwhile, the HSBC Water Programme has invested €500,000 in the Government of Malta’s Catch the Drop campaign, a large-scale three-year initiative to raise awareness about water conservation and stimulate positive change towards sustainable fresh water use in Malta and Gozo. The campaign aims to reach every single student in Malta, that is, over 50,000 students coming from 155 schools, all the 67 Local Councils in Malta and Gozo, as well as the Maltese public at large.