Action extends partnership with SOS Children's Villages
Action entered into partnership with the international child development organization SOS Children's Villages in January 2018; this partnership will be extended from 1 January 2021. This new contract will run for another 3 years. "All of us at Action are closely involved with, and proud of, our partnership with SOS" said Hajir Hajji, Action's commercial director. "Extending our partnership will allow us to keep working together to create a loving home for vulnerable children across the globe."
Arian Buurman, director of SOS Children's Villages in the Netherlands, said: "We're living in challenging times, and have to do everything we can to ensure children in our projects are cared for. Right now, partnerships are more important than ever. I'm delighted and grateful, therefore, that Action wants to extend its collaboration for a further three years. Action's contribution will allow us to not only provide everything SOS children need to grow up in a safe and loving environment, like food, education, medical care, and sports; Action is also contributing to the costs of maintaining children's villages and the homes of vulnerable families in the communities surrounding it."
Right now, Action sponsors over 1,500 children in Asia growing up in an SOS family in a children's village. Through the partnership, each Action store and our distribution centre teams are sponsoring one SOS child or village. "As Action keeps on growing, so does SOS Children's Villages," says Hajji. "With every new store opening we can help another child." Not only does each store sponsor SOS children - Action offices in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Poland and France support a number of SOS projects in Europe. This support - a financial donation - is added to on a national level by the Action office and the SOS Children's Village organization in the respective country. This allowed for example to contribute to building three SOS children's villages in France.
The partnership is part of Action's Social Responsibility strategy. This is a guide to how Action carries out business with respect for human rights, acting ethically, and caring for the environment making up the key pillars of the policy, both internally within the company and in the supply chain.
(Arian Buurman en Hajir Hajji content about the extended cooperation between Action and SOS Children's Villages)