Ayala Foundation Inc. (AFI) and Huawei Technologies Philippines Inc. held a virtual signing ceremony today to mark another milestone in their purposeful partnership aimed to provide digital education to Filipinos and building sustainable and resilient communities, with the long-term goal of contributing to Philippine nation-building.

At the event, AFI Senior Director for Social Development Joanna Maria Duarte, Huawei Philippines Vice President Daniel Guo, and Huawei Philippines Director for Globe Telecom Zeh Zhang inked a Memorandum of Understanding to formalize the partnership between AFI and Huawei. The collaboration coincides with the celebration of AFI’s 60th anniversary with the theme Faith in the Filipino: 60 Years of Partnerships in Nation-building.

Under the MoU, Huawei is donating $200,000 to support AFI’s programs focusing on disaster recovery and emergency response, education and training, and sustainable livelihood for women and indigenous peoples. Huawei also extends its support to Globe’s environmental programs with a donation of $100,000 for the telco’s rainforest bio-diversity program in Mindanao, bringing the total to $300,000 for the Ayala Group of Companies’ sustainable development initiatives.

In her message during the signing ceremony, Duarte recalled AFI’s partnership journey with Huawei over the years. “Huawei Philippines has been a long-time supporter of Ayala Foundation’s programs, particularly in the education sector. Throughout the years, Huawei has provided students in our partner communities all over the Philippines with facilities and equipment to improve their learning experience,” she said.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, such assistance to educational institutions is immensely needed to help students and teachers cope with the challenges of online learning. “In the past year, we have seen the extraordinary effects brought about by COVID-19. The Philippine education sector has been hit hard as teachers and students adapt to no face-to-face learning,” Duarte said.

She added that small-scale producers were also affected by the pandemic due to movement restrictions. “It is now, more than ever, that sustainable development must be at the forefront of our organizations,” Duarte emphasized, noting that Huawei’s donation will enable AFI to create and scale up its efforts through technology.

Sharing the same advocacies as AFI, Huawei Philippines believes in the lasting positive impact of social responsibility programs geared towards enabling the Filipino youth to achieve their dreams and improving the lives of people in local communities.

Guo said Huawei Philippines looks forward to continuing its partnership with Ayala Foundation and doing more sustainability programs for the benefit of Filipinos. “In the future, we want to be more active in contributing to Ayala Foundation’s CSR programs and in giving back to the Philippines,” Guo affirmed.

Guided by its global digital inclusion initiative, TECH4ALL, Huawei Philippines has been working with its local partners to create real change by connecting the unconnected communities, providing equitable access to technologies to underserved groups, and protecting the environment.

AFI continues to nurture partnerships with a wide network of government, non-governmental, corporate, and community-based organizations, as well as private individuals. It is on a mission to build communities that are creative, productive, self-reliant, and proud to be Filipino.

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