Pictures shown here are taken from St Patrick’s independent living quarters 

Three charities will this year benefit from funds allocated by Vodafone Malta who did away with corporate gifts last Christmas to instead channel the money towards philanthropic initiatives.  Fondazzjoni Suret il-Bniedem, St Patrick’s Salesian school and an international initiative supported by Vodafone Group – the Moyo Challenge – all benefitted from VodafoneMalta’s support through this initiative.

Last December Vodafone clients and stakeholders received a corporate card with a difference where they were asked to ‘trade off’ their yearly corporate gift to the charity of their choice from the identified three.  Vodafone Malta is increasingly including its stakeholders in its corporate responsibility initiatives so that making a difference in people’s lives becomes a collective effort.

Fondazzjoni Suret il-Bniedem is a foundation that provides residential and rehabilitation services to the homeless.  Residents include battered women, single mothers and persons with mental health difficulties.  The homes that the foundation manages currently require improvements to keep up with health and safety regulations. The funds donated by Vodafone will go towards the installation of an alarm system including fire detectors in 3 homes.

St. Patrick’s Salesian School is a Catholic school for 65 boys, 30 of whom currently reside at St. Patrick’s home.  The home provides care, support, therapy, education, and stability to boys between 9 and 16 and who require short or long placements.  The Salesians have embarked on a project to help boys over 16 to live independently within the home, acquiring life skills and striving towards a better future in a warm homely environment.

“Vodafone’s donation, for which we are truly grateful, will help finance projects that ensure safety in the homes,” said Paul Scerri Administrator from Fondazzjoni Suret il-Bniedem.  St Patrick’s Rector Fr Charlie Said likewise expressed his gratitude for the donation.  “Our mission has always been children and adolescents coming from difficult contexts, who needed support and formation.  We have recently refurbished some of our houses to encourage the older boys towards further independence and responsibility and to instill a sense of worth and self-esteem. Thanks to Vodafone’s financial help our projects are going forward.”

The third initiative, the Moyo Challenge involves Vodafone companies around the world to support comprehensive community-based rehabilitation in Tanzania to enable some of the poorest women in the country to access medical treatment for obstetric fistula.  Thanks to Vodafone’s M-Pesa money transfer system, thousands of women in Tanzania are now receiving the treatment they desperately need.  Vodafone is committed to raising €7 million by June 2012 to help expand existing facilities and build a new maternity hospital in Dar Es Salaam.