On Wednesday, 8 August 2012, as part of Ambatovy’s ongoing commitment to provide a solid foundation for sustainable development, the Company was proud to sign three cooperation agreements with various stakeholders in the sectors of community health and education, in the district of Moramanga.
As a responsible corporate citizen, Ambatovy chooses to actively participate in local development processes and therefore contribute to the improvement of the population’s health, education quality. It is with this in mind, that three more cooperation agreements were recently signed at a total cost of 765 million Ariary, which is approximately US$343,000.
Waste management
The first convention relates to the financing of a community health program based on waste management in the Urban Municipality of Moramanga. This program, the budget of which amounts to 240 million Ariary, aims to support household waste collection activities, which are conducted in partnership with the Urban Municipality. The purpose is to improve waste management in the city of Moramanga, putting the required materials and equipment at its disposal, whilst simultaneously sensitizing the population on issues of hygiene and sanitation. Ambatovy is particularly sensitive to the issue of waste management, as this is a major contributing factor to epidemics and infectious diseases, which in turn have the ability to cause major public health issues.
Improvements in health conditions
The second convention establishes a partnership between Ambatovy, the Moramanga District II Hospital and the National Nutrition Office (ONN) to improve the health conditions of the population through a variety of activities. These may include community mobilization, the provision of medical equipment, donations of medical supplies and capability building. In this program, worth165 million Ariary, activities will be based around health improvements in 4 key areas: HIV/AIDS; nutrition; prevention of population health conditions in the Mine lease area; and the establishment of a hospital incinerator for Moramanga District II’s hospital.
Improvements in education
The third convention is related to education, more specifically improving both access to and quality of both primary and secondary education in Moramanga. This agreement, between Ambatovy and the Regional Directorate of National Education in Alaotra Mangoro, is based on the establishment and implementation of the Contract for School Success Program (CPRS, in French) in both primary and secondary schools. CPRS includes activities such as textbook donations, the promotion of hygiene and sanitation in schools, the construction of environmentally-friendly schools and the distribution of prizes to outstanding students. Ambatovy has already established and implemented several programs of this nature, in collaboration with state partners, guarantors of education and national and international organizations, to which the Company contributes approximately 360 million Ariary.
The signing of these multipartite conventions has formalized a collaboration initiated by Ambatovy with the aforementioned entities for several months and marks another step further towards long-term development, both locally and nationally.
