The press corner
16/04/2003
The Proximus Foundation will be sponsoring 35 projects in 2003
Brussels, 16 April 2003 - The Proximus Foundation will this year be sponsoring thirty-five local initiatives to assist the disabled and socially excluded children or adults. A total budget of € 500,000 has been allocated to these projects, which were selected by an independent jury, employees and the company's customers.
Last year, on 5 December, the Proximus Foundation asked non-profit
associations operating in the social field in Belgium to put forward
projects. The goal? To offer these associations financial and human
support for a project to be undertaken in 2003. Proximus employees were
also asked to submit projects in conjunction with non-profit
associations. By the closing date at the end of January 2003, some 584
applications had been submitted, 472 of which were eligible under the
selection criteria established.
In allocating the total sum of €
500,000 and selecting the projects to be sponsored, the Proximus
Foundation decided to work on three levels, providing three different
types of award: the Proximus Employee Prize (1 project - maximum budget of € 50,000, the Prize of the Jury (maximum of € 350,000) and the Proximus Customer Prize (four projects - maximum budget of € 100,000).
On Wednesday evening, Lutgart Van den Berghe and Baudouin Michiels -
Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Proximus
Foundation selection jury, respectively - together with Philippe Vander
Putten, Proximus's Chief Executive Officer, will meet members of the
winning non-profit associations. Besides the handover of the prizes,
they will explain the working of the Foundation and his values The CEO
feels that the creation of the Proximus Foundation is a direct
reflection of the values promoted by the company (Reliance, Respect and
Team Spirit).
And the winners are ...
In creating a Foundation, Proximus wanted to involve those who are of particular importance to the company. Employees were therefore the first to be informed about the initiative. They were also the first to take part in the voting via the Proximus intranet site. In all, some 600 staff, i.e., nearly a quarter of the employees, voted.
The 2003 Proximus Employee Prize was given to asbl Koepel Eindelijk/Avalon
, whose project was put forward by the mobile operator's staff. This
project, which relates to the installation of a kitchen intended for
therapeutic purposes, was entered by Lieven Vertongen, a Proximus
employee, in conjunction with the non-profit association concerned.
Koepel Eindelijk/Avalon, which operates in Buggenhout in the province
of Antwerp, organizes a cooking workshop each week for people suffering
from post-natal brain damage. These activities are not a goal in
themselves, but have a therapeutic effect on the motor,
neuropsychological and psychological systems. The organization wants to
set up a kitchen designed to meet the practical and therapeutic needs
of disabled persons. The current kitchen consists of second-hand items
from here, there and everywhere.
In addition to the funding for this
installation, Lieven Vertongen will be granted a total time credit of
12 working days on which to work on the project.
The jury selected 30 projects and Proximus customers another four
At the end of February, the independent jury then selected 30 initiatives (see the descriptions attached) and chose another ten projects for presentation to another group of people who are of importance to Proximus, the operator's customers. Customers were asked to look at the ten projects on the Proximus Foundation's website. Once they had made their choice, they could vote for their favorite project by sending a free SMS message. The public were able to vote between 3 March to 7 April.
Description of the four projects selected
Katholieke Vereniging Gehandicapten - Koepel (Antwerpen )
Accessibility: a lift for the SEINhuis, a reception and services center for the disabled
The KVG-Koepel assocation is a center which organizes training sessions and provides various services for disabled persons. The disabled come to the SEINhuis building for information, meetings, conferences and training but the building has several floors. To make everything more accessible, building work has been undertaken by the organization in one of its buildings. The association would like to call on the Proximus Foundation to install an lift in this building to make it easier for customers, staff and volunteers accompanying disabled persons to come and go. Other building work will be undertaken later to ensure maximum accessibility (toilets, office equipment, corridors).
Dienstencentrum Ter Dreve (Bruges)
Everyone on the Net: computers for staff and residents of the Ter Dreve center
The Ter Dreve services center - for mentally handicapped children and adults - would like to equip each of its groups (ten in total) with a computer and network connection. With a view to education, they want to provide learning programs, educational games and communication programs for children who cannot speak. The introduction of such a network would make it easier for the administration to draw up and circulate reports and letters, manage the various groups and, above all, improve internal communication through the use of the e-mail.
Orthopedagogisch observatie- & behandelingscentrum (Ghent)
A dream garden
The orthopedic observation and treatment center assists children between the ages of 18 months and 21 years suffering from autism, Tourette's syndrome, behavioral problems and disorders. Their leisure activities must be organized in a clearly structured environment. The parents of the young patients have pointed to the dilapidated state of the garden. They spontaneously presented plans for the garden which they would like to see. They dream of a games area, a water fountain, a bicycle shed, a restored garden shed, benches and a sand pit, all surrounded by new flower beds, etc. This dream could become reality thanks to the Proximus Foundation.
Vertrouwens-centrum Kindermishandeling Vlaams-Brabant (Louvain)
Innovation and simplification of the conditions for taking testimony from children
This initiative is unique in Flanders and is part of an international scientific project aimed at developing techniques for taking testimony from children who have been the victims of trauma. The Leuven Vertrouwenscentrum team has long-standing experience of research in this field. Thanks to the proposed studio, children would only have to tell their story once. Everything will be recorded by very discretely placed cameras, set at various various angles. This would allow a number of objectives to be met: The child would only have to tell their tale once, which is less traumatic; Specific details can be clarified; other persons involved in the research can follow the tale from an adjoining room and the conversation is recorded so that it can then be replayed.
The Foundation will monitor progress achieved with the winning projects throughout the year. To find out more, consult the site www.proximusfoundation.be.
The Proximus Foundation is the outcome of a discussion process
within the company that had already fostered initiatives in the social,
health and environmental fields. For some year, for example, Proximus
has been offering preferential SMS rates to the deaf and hard of
hearing as part of its promise to be more socially committed. The
company also regularly sponsors a variety of initiatives, such as the
Red Cross Duck Race in Flanders, the Cedric Foundation or the PC for
Schools project - once they have been upgraded, Proximus offers to
primary schools computers and printers that have been taken out of
service and are no longer part of its computer park.
The aim of the Proximus Foundation is to provide assistance to persons residing in Belgium who are disadvantaged by their social exclusion, their age or handicap and to help them to integrate into society. At the same time, the Proximus Foundation wants to promote volunteer work among its employees.
To fulfill this objective, Proximus has allocated to the Foundation a total budget of € 500,000 for 2003. Projects which are eligible for an award can either be submitted directly to the Foundation by non-profit associations or NGOs recognized by the Ministry of Finance or by Proximus employees wanting to work in partnership with an association.
A new call for projects will be launched in the Autumn of this year: For more information (the rules for applying, application forms, etc.) are available on the site www.proximusfoundation.be.