Western Union initiative reaches one million PASSes milestone
On the eve of the 2015 UEFA Europa League Final between FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk and Sevilla FC at the National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland, Global Partner of the UEFA Europa League and Official Partner to The Beyond Soccer Series, powered by streetfootballworld, the Western Union Company and the Western Union Foundation, announced that their PASS initiative has reached its goal of one million passes to support better education for children globally.
Launched in September 2012, the PASS initiative has turned every successful pass made during the Group and Knock Out Stages of the 2012/13, 2013/14 and 2014/15 UEFA Europa League into funding that supports secondary education for young people in key markets. With the goal of supporting the delivery of one million days of education by the end of 2015, Western Union committed to a $1.8 million, three-year grant through the Western Union Foundation to support UNICEF’s secondary education programs for youth in 10 countries.
“Moving money for better is at the heart of what we do, and education is one of the main reasons Western Union customers send money,” said Patrick Gaston, president, Western Union Foundation. “According to UNICEF, 63 million adolescents globally are not enrolled in secondary or vocational education. It’s a tremendous loss of economic and human potential, since each extra year of school can increase an individual’s potential economic opportunity.”
“Three years ago, at the start of the Western Union sponsorship of the UEFA Europa League, we set out to deliver on our commitment. Today, I am proud to say that we have delivered on that commitment to provide access to better education and the projects supported by PASS funds are already making a difference. I’d like to express my thanks to all those involved in the initiative, particularly UNICEF, which has been implementing critically-needed education programs to help children complete school and have a brighter future, as well as all the players, fans, customers and staff who have all contributed.”
The PASS initiative is supporting educational projects including: teacher training and curriculum development, financial literacy, vocational and life skills training for adolescents; school improvements; and more. PASS funding has already been delivered to support UNICEF education programs in Brazil, Jamaica, Senegal, Nigeria, China, Morocco and Turkey, with funding scheduled to be delivered to programs in Colombia, Mexico and Romania this year.
The PASS initiativeis a key part of the Education for Better program, a three-year commitment launched at the UN General Assembly in September 2012 by Western Union and the Western Union Foundation, which includes philanthropic grants from the Western Union Foundation, advocacy, products/services, volunteer and marketing support for secondary and vocational education around the world.
Whilst players on the pitch have contributed the majority of passes, PASS has also been supported with communications programmes off the pitch which have allowed football fans, Western Union customers and staff to play a part.
During its three seasons, the PASS initiative, hasalso attracted some high profile support within the sport. Global PASS ambassador Patrick Vieira launched the initiative at the start of the 2012/13 UEFA Europa League season and more recently travelled to Senegal, the country where he was born, to see for himself the work being done by UNICEF (video).
Other players who have lent their support during the initiative include: USA and Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard, who led a campaign calling on fans to PASS For School (video); Nigerian football international Jay Jay Okocha, who went back to former club Eintracht Frankfurt in Germany to meet with fans; and Brazilian football legend Roberto Carlos, who met students benefiting from UNICEF programs in Istanbul, Turkey, in February 2014.
Marc Audrit, Vice President, Global Brand at Western Union, also commented, saying, “Football is a global language and we wanted to tap into that as a fundamental part of our sponsorship. By harnessing the power of football to raise awareness, and funding, for the unmet educational needs of young people, PASS has helped us deliver a message to the world that passes make a difference both on and off the pitch.”