1500 non profits, 27 countries
PUNTA DEL ESTE, Uruguay — Dec. 6, 2009 — As part of Microsoft Corp.’s
efforts to promote jobs, opportunities, education and innovation
through its Unlimited Potential initiative, the company announced today
at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) VII Inter-American
Conference on Corporate Social Responsibility its annual round of
donations to Community Technology Centers (CTCs).
Twenty-five nonprofit
organizations in the region will receive a combined $1.925 million
(U.S.) in cash, and another 155 institutions will receive software
donations equivalent to $5.413 million (U.S.) in an effort to support
regional work-force development, promote micro-entrepreneurship through
professional and technology skills training in CTCs, and strengthen the
nonprofits’ own IT infrastructure.
The grants and donations, which were announced during the “Soccer for
Social Development” panel, are expected to benefit more than 600 CTCs
in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2010 — helping to bring 1.46
million people in 16 countries closer to the digital revolution. Since
Microsoft’s Community Technology Skills Program started in the region
in 2003, more than 20 million people have benefited through more than
$16 million (U.S.) in grants and $139 million (U.S.) in software
donations to nearly 1,500 nonprofits in 27 countries in the region.
“Driving entrepreneurship is a key component of the social impact
Microsoft hopes to generate in Latin America and the Caribbean,” said
Hernán Rincón, president of Microsoft Latin America. “We believe that
we have a responsibility as leaders
in the IT industry to direct our social investments and partnerships
with local communities to empower people and provide them with the
tools that allow them to leverage the power of technology. CTCs have a
key role in providing technical skills training programs that help
people increase their self-sufficiency and capacity to learn. These
programs not only help close the digital divide but, as a result, also
enrich the local communities with a more educated and innovative work
force.”
Innovation and technology are key factors for a country’s social
development, but Microsoft and the IDB have also found that other
activities, such as soccer, can have a similar impact. By way of
programs that reach out to youth through sports, many young people have
had the opportunity to partake in work-force development programs that
have helped them find employment.
The grants, which are offered annually, help local nonprofit
organizations hire and train instructors, develop IT skills curriculum,
offer employee community engagement programs and strengthen IT
infrastructure. The software donations include programs such as
Microsoft Office 2007, Windows 7 and others, with the goal of helping
the organization with its day-to-day activities, as well as providing
software tools for the organization’s beneficiaries to use. Microsoft’s
efforts to strengthen nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) through the
use of technology also includes events such as NGO Connection Days and
the NGO Connection portal, a network where NGOs can access resources
and share their experiences in the innovative use of technology to help
them better serve their communities.
About Unlimited Potential
Microsoft, through its Unlimited Potential vision, is committed to
making technology more affordable, relevant and accessible for the 5
billion people around the world who do not yet enjoy its benefits. The
company aims to do so by helping to transform education and foster a
culture of innovation, and through these means enable better jobs and
opportunities. By working with governments, intergovernmental
organizations, nongovernmental organizations and industry partners,
Microsoft hopes to reach its first major milestone — to reach the next
1 billion people who are not yet realizing the benefits of technology —
by 2015.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader
in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses
realize their full potential.