The FINANCIAL — On International Corporate Philanthropy Day, the Western Union Company and The Western Union Foundation are celebrating the success of Western Union’s Our World, Our Family program.
Launched in 2007, the program committed $50 million over five years to promote economic opportunity and help families stay connected, overcome barriers, and realize their dreams.
A new report details the program’s impact, including having: Reached five million people in 70 countries
Provided education tools, including scholarships, to one million students
Offered integration support to nearly 270,000 global migrants
Supported 455,000 entrepreneurs with loans and business training
Provided financial literacy resources and training to more than 550,000 people
Delivered disaster relief and recovery support to 900,000 people
“Our business is a positive force for growth, helping people send money to loved ones and business partners in 200 countries and territories,” said Luella Chavez D’Angelo, chief communications officer, Western Union. “The Our World, Our Family program has helped us focus our business and our giving together for an even greater impact on consumers and their communities. I believe our passion for our customers sets us apart, and I am very proud of what we have accomplished.”
The Clinton Global Initiative recognized the Our World, Our Family program as a commitment on-stage at its 2008 Annual Meeting and CECP honored the program with its prestigious Excellence Award in 2009. The award jury noted that Western Union was, “brave for taking on a complex social issue [migration], and for leveraging its extensive network to make far-reaching and sustainable impact.” Western Union services, including an expanding product portfolio, are available via almost a half million Agent locations, call centers, mobile, and a growing online presence.
“Western Union, through the Our World, Our Family program, provides a remarkable example of how effective corporate philanthropy can be when it aligns with the core business,” said Margaret Coady, executive director, CECP. “It’s easy to underestimate the tremendous commitment it takes from a company and its partners for an initiative to accomplish what it set out to do. It’s fitting to announce the program’s remarkable impact on International Corporate Philanthropy Day.”
The Our World, Our Family program rallied key stakeholders, with as much as 57 percent of employees annually donating to support the program and volunteering tens of thousands of hours for nonprofits worldwide. More than 350 Western Union Agents, who live and work in the communities the company serves, also rolled up their sleeves to make a difference.
As the Western Union Company said, through strategic relationships with organizations such as Mercy Corps, the United Nations and USAID, the Our World, Our Family program helped educate tens of thousands of students to join the workforce, create jobs via small business assistance, and prepared workers to convert wages to wealth via financial literacy training. It also helped rebuild lives and livelihoods following 62 disasters around the world.
“Western Union’s business is evolving to meet changing market needs, and our social programs must evolve as well,” said Patrick Gaston, president, The Western Union Foundation. “Few issues matter more to our consumers than ensuring the success of the next generation. The past five years have shown us that education is one of the surest paths to a better future. We are leveraging our learnings from the Our World, Our Family program as we implement our next big community commitment – Education for Better.”
Announced at the UN General Assembly in September 2012, Education for Better is a three-year commitment to help meet global educational goals through grants, cause marketing, advocacy, employee engagement, and products that facilitate education. The program includes a commitment of $10,000 per day for more than 1,000 days to help advance educational goals, with a focus on secondary and vocational training.
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