Some 300 vulnerable children will soon be better equipped for school through the collaboration of DHL Express Regional/Guyana, USAID/GHARP and two non- governmental organisations.
School kits and text books, compliments of DHL, will be made available to the children through Lifeline Counselling and Agape Network (formerly Love and Faith) of Sophia. The kits the children will receive will contain pencil, sharpener, eraser and stencil ruler in branded DHL cases. Thirty text books – the New Junior English Revised and the New First AID in English Revised – will also be made available.
The idea was born out of a visit to the DHL International office in Florida by Christine Kesl, Human Resource Advisor with Howard Delafield International (HDI), a partner of the Guyana HIV/AIDS Reduction and Prevention (GHARP) Project with the aim of forming a partnership to benefit vulnerable children.
Speaking at the handing-over ceremony at the DDL building on High Street, Shawna Reis, Technical Officer of GHARP, said within days of the visit, the DHL office responded positively and offered to support vulnerable children once a project was drawn up. Hence the school supply project, the cost of which, according to DHL, will exceed US$2,000 as it also includes monetary contributions. The company demonstrated its commitment from the beginning of the negotiations and expressed its willingness to focus first on the community, targeting NGOs in and around Georgetown where it has the majority of its business and customers.
Carla Halley, Sales/Customer Care Executive of DHL, said that while the contribution is one-off for this year the company plans to come on board again next year to support children in need. The company says it plans to scale up on similar educational and social development programmes that support and reach children in an effective and measurable way.
In expressing her gratitude for the donation, Carlotta Williams, of Lifeline Counselling, said the packages are valuable as they will help build the children’s self esteem and increase their knowledge. Lauren Fraser of the Agape Network expressed similar sentiments while stating that working with children in Sophia, the needs presented on a daily basis were sometimes overwhelming. She said the contribution by DHL was greatly appreciated.
Also speaking at the simple presentation was GHARP’s Chief of Party, Kwame Asiedu, who in noting the importance of the partnership with DHL pointed out that the HIV response requires the efforts of all organisations and persons in society. It was in that vein DHL came on board and he said the company and his organisation believe that more can be achieved in the HIV and AIDS fight when they work together.
