The "la Caixa" Foundation has reached more than 16 million people with its international action over the last 25 years
The "la Caixa" Foundation celebrated the 25th anniversary of its International Cooperation Programme at CosmoCaixa, in an event that brought together top-level speakers and representatives of leading institutions on a global scale in the field of development aid. The meeting was also attended by the Director General of the "la Caixa" Foundation, Antonio Vila Bertrán, and the Director of the International Area of the "la Caixa" Foundation, HRH Cristina de Borbón y Grecia.
Since 1997, the International Cooperation Programme of the "la Caixa" Foundation has promoted a total of 663 projects in 65 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America with the aim of generating opportunities and combating inequalities among the most vulnerable groups, within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This has made it possible to reach more than 16 million people thanks to the joint work with more than 800 partners and collaborators, focusing on the most urgent needs.
During the event, two round tables were held, focusing on global health and development, to reflect on the present and future of international cooperation, dedicating the debate above all to the great challenges and priorities for the coming years. All with a common goal: to continue transforming lives.
These round tables were moderated by Jaime Sepúlveda, Distinguished Professor of Global Health, Executive Director of the Global Health Sciences Institute at the University of California (San Francisco), and Delphine Moralis, Executive Director of the Philanthropy Europe Association (Philea). Journalist Cristina Villanueva was the master of ceremonies for the event.
In these 25 years, the organisation has shared some lessons and challenges, among which are the importance of joining forces and building networks in the different countries where they work; the need to invest in research and innovation, which are key to development and humanitarian action, always prioritising people; transparency as a guarantee of trust and the generation of knowledge to increase impact, as well as the importance of involving society, companies, philanthropy and volunteers in all actions.
Some of the milestones during this period have been the creation of calls for support for development cooperation projects and humanitarian action; the opening of the Washington D. C. office to increase the international presence of the entity and promote collaborations with the main international organisations and foundations; and the promotion of more than 11,000 jobs through the Work4Progress programme, whose objective is to generate new employment opportunities for women and young people, through open platforms for social innovation in India, Mozambique and Peru.
Also noteworthy is the Child Vaccination Programme, developed with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, which has contributed to vaccinating more than 8 million children, as well as the alliances in the fight against malaria with ISGlobal and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Likewise, the MOM project, to fight child malnutrition in collaboration with UNHCR, has helped more than 620,000 children under 5 years of age. In addition to these initiatives, 612 CooperantesCaixa volunteers have provided technical assistance in 23 countries, the total of 18 million donations received, the organisation of 14 exhibitions and activities with more than 2 million visitors, and 17 international prizes and awards.
Recently, the International Cooperation Programme has also contributed to the response to the humanitarian crisis caused by the war in Ukraine. To this end, the "la Caixa" Foundation has joined forces with UNHCR and Unicef with the aim of reinforcing the action of these humanitarian organisations through a total contribution of 2 million euros.
