Teneo Joins ActionAid Changemakers II Ethiopian Schools Program

Technology integrator puts £100K ($130K) into school and cultural projects; program will transform lives of 6000 Ethiopian women and children.

Theale, UK and Dulles, VA, USA – November 19, 2018 – Teneo, the Work From Anywhere IT services company, has joined the ActionAid Changemakers II Program, donating £100,000 ($130,000) to help transform the education and life prospects of more than 6,000 women and children in Ethiopia.

The fast-growing technology company, which has offices in the UK, France, USA and Australia, will make the investment over three years, part-funding a visionary new Changemakers II project to make education available to women and girls across the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ (SNNP) Region.

The program not only aims to increase school attendance levels but also achieve genuine acceptance among the whole community of a girls’ right to an education.

Teneo’s donation will help the Changemakers II Program to build three school buildings for a total of 6000 students, provide clean drinking water facilities and create separate toilets for males and females in all schools.

In addition, the project will train more than 500 women in how to support their own small-scale enterprises using local Savings and Credit Cooperative (SACCO) arrangements.

Although schooling is technically speaking, free and mandatory in Ethiopia, many children, young girls in particular, miss out on it because of inadequate buildings and entrenched local customs such as female genital mutilation and child marriage. To change traditional mindsets, the Changemakers II program will set up local Women’s Watch Groups to deter these longstanding practices.

Changemakers was started in 2014 by UK supporters of the ActionAid charity to provide more schools in Ethiopia. It continues ActionAid’s work in the country going back to 1989.  Earlier Changemakers projects in the country have successfully boosted the education prospects and self-esteem of more than 3,000 children, especially girls, by providing new school buildings, desks, books and set up girls’ clubs.

As part of Teneo’s sponsorship, the company is encouraging its employees to carry out their own fund-raising activities in support of ActionAid. The Teneo employee raising the most funds in the coming financial year will be given the opportunity to travel to Ethiopia to see the project work in action.

Teneo CEO Piers Carey decided to support Changemakers II after originally visiting a school while on vacation in Ethiopia in 2011. Teneo went on to complete a school building project in Ethiopia with ActionAid in 2014-2015.

He said: “I’m humbled by ActionAid’s exceptional work. Having witnessed the sheer joy and exciting opportunities their projects bring to these wonderful communities when visiting the country a few years ago, I vowed to make a difference to the country’s education when I got the chance.”

Teneo has a seven-year record of supporting charitable work in Africa and beyond, whether as financial support or through individual staff members volunteering to work on different local building and cultural projects.

Piers Carey commented: “I’m touched by our staff’s passion for transformative local aid projects like Changemakers II. Teneo’s work is all about opening minds to new possibilities and it’s great to make that happen in Ethiopia as well. Our commitment to help women and children in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ (SNNP) Region gain a real education is only possible because of our exceptional customers, partners and employees.”

“On behalf of everyone at ActionAid, we are thrilled to welcome Teneo to Changemakers II. For many years, Teneo have been generous champions of our work and we are delighted that this ongoing partnership will transform education in Ethiopia and change the lives of over 5,000 children and women. The team in Ethiopia share our excitement and are looking forward to realizing the lasting impact of this project, creating a safe school environment for girls and improving livelihoods for women in the SNNP Region,” said Girish Menon, CEO, ActionAid UK.

About ActionAid

ActionAid is an international charity that works with women and girls living in poverty. Our dedicated local staff are helping end violence against women and girls and changing lives, for good. We won’t stop until women and girls are out of danger, out of poverty and on track to create the future they want.

For more information, visit www.actionaid.org

About Teneo

Most IT Infrastructure and Operations teams are overworked and struggle to introduce new technology. At Teneo, our Work From Anywhere IT services combine leading technology with expert guidance, so they can embrace innovation with confidence. Find us at www.teneo.net

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