Volunteering for Proniño is an international cooperation volunteering programme that consists of Telefónica volunteers spending 2 weeks taking part in different projects that will be carried out in various Latin American countries.
These projects have been set up in collaboration with organisations from Fundación Telefónica's Proniño programme, which seeks to contribute to the eradication of child labour in Latin America. The project forms part of the initiatives of the Telefónica Volunteers programme, run by Fundación Telefónica, which aims to channel the spirit of solidarity of Telefónica Group employees, through their participation in volunteering activities in society.
The volunteers selected for Volunteering for Proniño donate part of their annual holidays to participate in different social projects, related to Fundación Telefónica’s Proniño programme, which seeks to contribute to the eradication of child labour in Latin America.
"Volunteering for Proniño" takes place during July, August and September and each volunteer spends 2 weeks in their destination. The project has been running since 2005; the 6 editions already held were very successful both in terms of participation and initiatives carried out.
The company takes care of all of the expenses associated with travelling to the destination country (flights, insurance, etc.) and accommodation with breakfast during the two weeks that the volunteer work will be carried out. Likewise, the company pays all costs associated with carrying out the collaboration projects on which the volunteers work in the destination country.
During the weeks of collaboration, educational activities are carried out, both generally and particularly to encourage good use of free time, thus avoiding possible risks of child labour. Initiatives are also undertaken aimed at the families, the school and the community, such as training workshops for parents and teachers, environmental initiatives and many other activities, always seeking to foment comprehensive development of the communities most at need and the societies in which Fundación Telefónica participates through its programmes.
The company’s aim through this project is to create an emotional link between the employees of all the companies of the Telefónica Group and the Telefónica brand and its social initiative, generating an international network of volunteers who want to dedicate their time and knowledge to carrying out initiatives of social interest, in line with the objectives of the company’s social initiative. In this way, the employees become the true protagonists of the company’s social initiative.
The aim is also to build a bridge between the company and the community, generating relevant, transformative social impact and encouraging a spirit of working together for mutual benefit, thus improving relations with the communities in which Telefónica operates.
The aims of “Volunteering for Proniño” are:
Likewise, in carrying out the cooperation activities in organisations associated with Fundación Telefónica’s Proniño programme, we also aim to contribute to its objective, which is the eradication of child labour in Latin America by enrolling working children and teenagers at school, using the technological and managerial capacities of Telefónica to improve the quality of education, investing to strengthen society and, above all, the comprehensive protection of the children affected.
For the seventh year running, Telefónica Volunteers from all the countries in the Group will spend 2 weeks of their holiday on projects in Latin America, collaborating with the Proniño programme.
In 2010, one hundred volunteers from all the companies in the Group were chosen from among 500 candidates, after an intensive selection process, to take part in Volunteering for Proniño.
This year the project data will consist of:
-100 Telefónica Volunteers, from 19 countries of origin, from the 3 business regions (LatAm, Spain and Europe): Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, Spain, UK, Ireland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Germany.
- 10 projects in 7 destination countries*: Argentina, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, Peru and Venezuela
* The destination countries may vary depending on the programme objectives.
