The Cable and Wireless Charitable Foundation (CWCF) is celebrating five years of partnership with local, regional, and international agencies and a total of $3.5 million in donations providing digital access and supporting relief and recovery initiatives throughout the Caribbean, with the release of its 2022 Annual Report.
Commenting on the milestone, Inge Smidts, Chair of the CWCF Board, remarked that “The Foundation was established out of a response to natural disasters in 2017 and has since evolved from reacting to natural disasters, like Hurricanes Maria, Irma, and Dorian, into a philanthropic organization that’s proactively expanding access, providing connectivity, and enhancing education for people we serve across the region.”
Cementing this shift in focus, the Foundation also marked its 5-year anniversary with the successful completion of a pilot program in Jamaica focused on digital education for individuals aged 16-60 years old. Under this program, over 2,000 Jamaicans successfully completed basic digital literacy training with more than 830 going on to graduate with a certificate in digital and data literacy. Another 3,875 Jamaicans also attained certification in various professional courses. Both programs were funded by the CWCF and executed in collaboration with the Flow Foundation and its partners – the Mona School of Business and Management at the University of the West Indies for the digital and data literacy element and One on One Educational Services for the digital training and professional certification element.
Smidts continued, “We take tremendous pride in the evolution of the Foundation and the opportunity to continue to serve the communities in which we live and work. After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, 2022 saw the return of our popular Spring Golf Classic, raising $450,000 to fund grants for digital devices, online access, and learning tools for schools and community organizations across the region.”
To help fund future initiatives, the CWCF will invite scores of its partners and suppliers to participate in a Racing Experience on April 20, 2023, in Miami, Florida. Guests will have the opportunity to meet and interact with NASCAR Driver Stanton Barrett and participate in a ride-along with a professional driver. The event is presented by One Caribbean Television and GENIOX and sponsored by several partners including 3-Cycle/NEO HG, The Admark Network, Amdocs, Athena Global Advisors, Cerillion Technologies, The Cervantes Group, Cisco, EFL Global, Emida, Globant, Huawei, Identidad Solutions, Integsoft, Latham & Watkins, Lorac Communications, Publicis Group, Russell Reynolds, Wesbell, and Wesco | Anixter.
Other sponsors include A&E Networks, AdvantageCall, BBC, CapGemini, Deloitte, FutureBrand, Intcomex, Marsh McLennan Agency, McCan Worldgroup, Messangi Corp, PerfectVision, Prodapt, Redmond Software, Vecima, and Zee World.
Remarking on the event, CWCF Director, Noelle Smikle, says she hopes to double the funds raised in 2022. “We are grateful to have the ongoing support of our partners who are as passionate as we are about creating a positive impact in our communities, which is why we’ve set a fundraising target of $1M in 2023 to do even more great work, supporting the people of our region.”
Individuals and companies interested in supporting the CWCF’s initiatives can visit https://cwcf2023.com/ for sponsorship and ticket details.