Accra, Sept. 9, GNA - Vodafone Group plc announced on Tuesday that it would establish the Vodafone Ghana Foundation, with an initial commitment of 200,000 pounds, saying the company was committed to social investment in the communities in which it operated.

This new foundation, according to the release issued by Ghana Telecom and signed by Major Albert B. Don-Chebe (Rtd), Head of Corporate Communications and Customer Care, would be supported by the Vodafone Foundation which had developed a unique network of 23 foundations around the world which, in the last 12 months granted 36.6 million pounds to charitable programmes in the communities in which Vodafone operated.

It said the principal aim of the Vodafone Ghana Foundation would be to make a positive contribution to the Ghanaian society by providing direct grants to locally registered charities and global non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with suitable social investment aims and objectives.

"Building on the work of the GTCares community projects programme, the Vodafone Ghana Foundation will be established to focus on projects associated with health, notably in the rural communities and secondary education in areas where enrolment is low and infrastructure inadequate."

By investing in the community in this way, the release said, the Vodafone Ghana Foundation would seek to make a contribution to poverty reduction and strengthening the conditions for the most vulnerable members of society to participate in the country's future economic growth.

The Foundation would begin work as soon as the formal registration process had been completed according to Ghanaian law and following the appointment of a Board of Trustees, it said.

Vittorio Colao, CEO Vodafone Group plc, added: "Vodafone is very proud of its unique global network of corporate foundations which are making a social commitment in the communities in which the company operates. I am delighted that Vodafone Ghana will be establishing its own foundation, so soon after closing the transaction, becoming the twenty-third local foundation in the company's network."

The release pointed out that Vodafone had invested over 100 million pounds in projects since 2002 concentrating on disaster relief, helping disadvantaged young people via sport and music initiatives and specific local projects across Vodafone's 23 foundations worldwide. Vodafone is the world's leading international mobile communications group with approximately 269 million customers as of June 30, 2008. Currently it has equity interests in 27 countries across five continents and over 40 partner networks worldwide. 9 Sept. 08