[September 03, 2014]

Oando Foundation Launches Ebola Education Support Fund for Children Affected by the Deadly Disease

Nigeria-based Oando Foundation announced the launch of its Ebola Education Support Fund to support the education of Nigerian children affected by the spread of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). The fund will provide aid to children who require financial assistance who have lost one or both of their parents to the deadly disease. Ebola is a contagious and highly infectious hemorrhagic fever sweeping through West Africa; in Nigeria there have been five reported fatalities in Lagos and Rivers States.

The Ebola Education Support Fund was instituted to support the financial strain that may be experienced by many families due to the loss of a parent or both parents. This could have a huge impact on the ability of children to continue schooling thereby invariably affecting the future of our country.

The UNESCO Education for All Report 2013/14 statistics reveals that there are 10.5 million out-of-school Nigerian children. The Foundation has a mandate to ensure that the devastation caused by the EVD does not increase the number of Out-of-School Children in Nigeria.

"We appreciate that the loss of a parent or both parents to EVD can be very daunting and seriously affect the future of a child," says Tokunboh Durosaro, Director of the Oando Foundation. "Th importance of education cannot be underscored and this is why Oando Foundation has launched the Ebola Education Support Fund to mitigate the effect of this tragedy. The fund will ensure that all affected children complete their education to university level, notwithstanding their loss."

The Ebola Education Support Fund will provide grants to cover school fees and other education costs of all affected children from now until university graduation.

In addition to the Education Support Fund, Oando Foundation is also supporting the Ebola Containment Trust Fund to prevent further spread of the disease by donating over 5,000 protective suits, gloves, protective glasses and boot covers. These items will be distributed to health workers and medical institutions in Lagos and Rivers State.

About Oando Foundation:

Oando Foundation, established in 2011, is an independent charity launched by Oando PLC, one of Africa's leading indigenous energy solutions providers. The Foundation aims to support the Nigerian Government to meet the Millennium Development Goals to achieve Universal primary education. Its mission is to radically improve the quality of teaching and learning in Nigerian schools and communities by ensuring access to world class basic education systems.

Oando PLC currently provides 1% of its annual pretax profit to fund the Foundation. Oando Foundation has also established strategic partnerships with government, the private sector, international development partners, NGOs and civil society to fulfill its goals and objectives.

Oando Foundation has adopted 48 schools across 20 states, Adamawa, AkwaIbom, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Cross River, Ebonyi, Edo, Enugu, FCT Abuja, Kaduna, Katsina, Kwara, Lagos, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, and Taraba States. The Foundation plans to adopt 100 schools by 2015; directly affect over 200,000 lives by ensuring over 100,000 pupils have access to quality primary education; broaden the capacity of over 4,000 teachers, award scholarships to over 2,560 pupils to reduce direct and indirect costs of education to students.

Learn more about the Foundation at oandofoundation.org.

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