FCBARCELONA.CAT
Main menu
Content menu
Club
10.06.2009 20:47
A smile for the most vulnerable
Marc Parramon (enviat especial)
In a joint press conference with UNICEF in the headquarters of the UN in New York, Barça president Joan Laporta highlighted the determination of the Club to keep on working to support the most vulnerable at a time of sporting success.
At the press conference held to review the last three years of the agreement with UNICEF, Joan Laporta emphasized that Barça is determined to continue to lead the way in supporting the underprivileged peoples of the world.
The press call was attended by Joan Laporta, Marta Segú, director general of the FC Barcelona Foundation, UNICEF regional director Philip O’Brien and Jama Gulaib, director of UNICEF in Swaziland.
Mr Laporta explained that the Club wants to combine sporting success with support for
the most vulnerable: “At moments of sporting success for the Club, we want a smile on the
faces of the most unfortunate children”.
Serious and professional
The Barça president pointed to the results of the three years of cooperation between
the Club, via the Foundation, and UNICEF: “The Corporative Social Responsibility of the Club,
via the Foundation, is serious and professional”.
Projects that work
Swaziland, Malawi and Angola are the three focal points – for the moment – of the joint efforts and Laporta praised their capacity for transformation and improvement: “The results of these three years of cooperation show the maturity of our alliance and the programmes we are working on”.
Numbers that tell a story
Philip O’Brien, UNICEF regional director, insisted that all these projects require the support of organizations like Barça: “We are fighting for a generation free of AIDS and we can only do this with Barça”.
O’Brien also highlighted the support of the Club in such a successful sporting season: “It’s been a great year for Barça and we are proud of their sporting record”.
Marta Segú, director general of the FCB Foundation, discussed some of the statistics arising from the various projects. For example, 83% of pregnant women who are seropositive now receive antiretroviral treatment and 48% of children in Swaziland are now diagnosed thanks to the DNA PCR machine purchased at the start of the project.
Barça to increase support
During the press conference, it was revealed that Barça will now be financing the East
and South African Region Office (ESARO). This is a specialist group within UNICEF that aims to
fight AIDS in 19 African countries. This will make the Foundation one of the principal financial
backers of this body.
Laporta also revealed that the Club is considering increasing its contribution to the alliance.
Condolence to families of UN workers
On behalf of the Club, Mr Laporta expressed his condolences to the families of the UNICEF and ACNUR
workers killed in the bomb attack in Pakistan. Before the press conference, Mr Laporta had a
meeting with UNICEF executive director Ann Venemann who informed him of the support being given to
the families of the two workers killed in the attack.
