Citi Foundation marks a decade of support in Jordan with microfinance & education focus

Microfinance Focus , Dec. 29, 2009 : Citi Foundation, Citi’s philanthropic arm, recently extended five new grants to the King Abullah II Fund for Development, Injaz ) a member of Junior Achievement Worldwide(, FINCA, Jordan Hashemite Fund for Human Development and Al-Aman Fund for the Future of Orphans in the form of financial aid and micro-finance support benefiting more than 150 Jordanian youths.

This latest series of grants marks a decade of support for social and economic development programs in Jordan by Citi with a total social investment grants exceeding $1,200,000. Throughout this period, the bank’s efforts have mainly focused on providing partial scholarships reaching over 1,700 university level students in addition to extending grants to NGOs investing in youth education programs & microfinance for low-income families.

A key partnership with the Jordan River Foundation (JRF) was forged during this period resulting in the successful execution of several sustainability programs aimed at raising business skill level of women entrepreneurs in Amman, Aqaba and Ajloun. Since 2006, JRF has been Citi’s partner in launching the ‘Citi Microentrepreneurship Awards’ program which aims at rewarding successful micro-entrepreneurs in Jordan and raising awareness about the vital economic role of small business establishments in the Kingdom.

Ziyad Akrouk, Citi’s General Manager for Jordan, said: “We at Citi adopt a clear policy in the service of the 100+ communities that host us worldwide, including Jordan, and we do play a positive role in promoting financial education and micro- entrepreneurship for the purpose of improving the talent pool and improving living conditions among the less advantaged parts of society.”

“We support the microfinance sector through annual financial grants to micro-entrepreneurs and reward outstanding students at Jordanian universities, whose only impediment is financial, through scholarships. This has been our approach for more than seven years and we intend to continue on this route which falls within our mission as a global corporate citizen,” continued Mr. Akrouk.

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