CaixaBank has launched for the first time the international volunteering programme ‘CooperantesCaixa’, which is aimed at the employees and pensioners of the bank, the Group and the “la Caixa” Foundation, all of which partake in CaixaBank Volunteering.
A total of 30 people have participated in this international cooperation experience carried out throughout the second half of 2022.
The volunteers' contribution has consisted in providing qualified technical assistance to NGOs with development projects in four countries: Peru, Mozambique, India and Ethiopia. The collaboration between the entities and the volunteers has been managed entirely online.
Collaboration with four countries
The ‘CooperantesCaixa’ programme, whose previous editions have been organised by the “la Caixa” Foundation, has involved ten international social entities.
Among them stands out the support to organisations that provide qualified technical assistance aimed at driving the progress of communities. In Peru, the volunteers have worked with the Codespa Foundation, delivering workshops on design, sales, marketing and finances; with Entreculturas, disseminating employment content, events with young entrepreneurs and meetings with young people for job banks; and with Action Against Hunger, offering technical advice on business management for small establishments.
In India, digital marketing plans have been carried out through the ActiónAid association, and comparison tools and instruments for financing microenterprises have been built together with the entity Development Alternatives, within the framework of the employment promotion programme Work4Progress.
In Ethiopia, training on creative communication and storytelling activities have been delivered in collaboration with ACNUR to promote social and behavioural changes through the Mom Project, which is committed to fighting against child malnutrition.
Moreover, in Mozambique, the volunteers have created a business and feasibility plan as well as a digital marketing and communications strategy plan with the NGO Enraiza Derechos y Cesal. Together with Ayuda en Acción, they have also designed microenterprise management and marketing processes. Lastly, a skills development plan for undergraduates is being designed in collaboration with the Aga Khan Foundation; this is the only project that is still in development, and it is expected to be completed by mid-January.
About CaixaBank's Social Action
CaixaBank is an organisation with a far-reaching social vocation. The bank is a benchmark in sustainable banking and has an attitude of serving its customers and wider society.
In its response to the challenges demanded by society, among other measures, the bank fosters social action initiatives and corporate voluntary work, whilst it also offers services and solutions for all kinds of people through its financial activity.
The strategy for Social Action is aimed at promoting joint projects with the "la Caixa" Foundation, as well as other partnerships directly promoted by CaixaBank. Thanks to its territorial capillarity, the CaixaBank branch network, which is the largest in Spain with presence in 2,234 municipalities, can support the "la Caixa" Foundation in detecting the needs of local social organisations.
CaixaBank’s sustainable activities have been recognised by leading international bodies. The Dow Jones Sustainability Index ranks it among the best banks in the world in terms of sustainability. Similarly, the international organisation CDP acknowledges CaixaBank as the leading bank in the struggle against climate change.
