Read below the full interview with the Executive Secretary of the MTNC Foundation on the 21 Days of Y'ello Care 2023.
The Hilltop Mail: Can you tell us more about the 21 Days of Y'ello Care concept and objectives behind its creation?
The 21 Days of Y'ello Care is a volunteer and solidarity programme launched by the MTN Group in 2007 to encourage employees in all its subsidiaries to get involved in social actions for the benefit of disadvantaged communities.
This programme completes MTN's social investment policy embodied by the MTN Foundation. Unlike the Foundation whose projects are financed by the company and carried out over time, the 21 Days of Y'ello Care programme is supported by the efforts of employees and contributions from partners.
The Hilltop Mail: This is the sixteenth edition, what is your assessment of the programme since it was launched in 2007?
This sixteenth edition in Cameroon reflects the hallmark of maturity. In 16 years, we have completed a host of projects; dozens of classrooms have been built; training centres equipped, and thousands of children enrolled in school.
We have visited a number of target groups, including children in remote areas, orphans and refugees, the visually impaired, deaf, dumb and girls who have dropped out of school as well as farming communities with the same enthusiasm every year since 2007.
Some of the most popular campaigns include:
Support for the enrolment of 2,100 disadvantaged girls from Kousseri in the Logone and Chari region over a period of 06 years (entire primary cycle).
The construction of classrooms at government primary school, Gado Badzere near Garoua Boulai in the East region in 2014 to accommodate the influx of children due to the conflict in the Central Africa republic.
The construction of classrooms for the visually impaired in 2015.
Setting up specialised centres for the hearing impaired.
The 21 Days of Yello Care is a competition between the Group's 22 subsidiaries. The best subsidiary wins a prize worth 100,000 dollars to be reinvested in a social project. Cameroon has won three editions of the challenge in 2012, 2013 and 2015 as well as several other prizes over the years. It's been an exciting and rewarding experience, and the journey continues!
The Hilltop Mail: What projects will MTN Cameroon carry out within 21 days and which communities will benefit?
In Cameroon, the projects for this 2023 edition focus on promoting eco-friendly entrepreneurship and inclusive development. The aim is to encourage economic growth and job creation by offering young entrepreneurs the opportunity to improve their activities through the efficient use of digital tools.
The initiatives to be deployed this year mainly target self-employment candidates such as students of industrial technical high schools, people living with disabilities and young women with entrepreneurial schemes. The projects this year to be rolled out are as follows :
The construction of an incubator for the manufacture of pavements from plastic waste.
Self-employment through the equipping of 09 co-workspaces across the country and the granting of training scholarships in digital professions for people living with disabilities.
Capacity-building for women entrepreneurs through a training workshop on the critical start-up phases of a project.
The Hilltop Mail: This year, 2023, the format of 21 Days of Y'ello Care has changed and you are moving from an MTN employee volunteer programme to an engagement involvement of external social partners. What are the reasons for this transformation?
The participatory approach has been at the heart of everything we do since the launch of this programme. In a spirit of alliance and synergy, we have always sought to involve all institutions of goodwill that are ready to get involved in improving the living conditions of Cameroonians.
I would like to seize this opportunity to thank our State partners, the agencies of the United Nations system, private sector companies, associations and local communities who have always taken an active part in this programme.
In terms of community outreach, is MTN Cameroon positioning itself as the leader of a truly social network?
The MTN Foundation is the very 1st corporate foundation created in Cameroon in 2005.
After 18 years of existence and intense activity, its leadership in the field of civic responsibility has been established and confirmed through the many actions carried out in favour of disadvantaged groups. Thanks to the activities of the Foundation and achievements of the 21 Days of Y'ello Care programme, MTN Cameroon has won the CSR gold medal several times.
What do you expect from the population during the 21 Days of Y'ello Care?
For us, the 21 Days of Y'ello Care is an effective tool for bringing about significant, measurable and sustainable change to help disadvantaged and rural communities to become self-sufficient. The population is invited to follow the progress of the projects on all our pages and participate physically in the volunteer activities organized across the country.
The Hilltop Mail: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become an important pillar of good corporate citizenship. How does MTN Cameroon make its targets aware of the work being done in this area?
MTN Foundation is very active in the field and maintains permanent contact with these targets through various field activities. All the projects are reported in the traditional media and on social networks. It is easy to follow the progress of our projects on our various pages.
https://twitter.com/MTNFoundation
www.facebook.com/mtnfoundation