Bankia S A : supports Cáritas and its employability programmes with 200,000 euros after the COVID-19 crisis

• The entity supports the 'Integrated Itineraries of Social and Labour Insertion' of Cáritas in ten autonomous regions with the aim of promoting access to decent employment in equal opportunities and promoting the employment of vulnerable people and those affected by the pandemic
• More than 13,000 people have benefited from this initiative in the previous eight editions, achieving a job placement rate of 20%
• Bankia has supported Cáritas' employment, entrepreneurship and social emergency programmes implemented throughout the country with a total of 3.18 million euros since 2013

Bankia has allocated 200,000 euros to the 'Integrated Itineraries of Social and Labour Insertion' of Cáritas, which aims to promote access to employment for vulnerable groups and, especially, those who have been affected by the economic crisis generated by COVID-19.

The Cáritas Programme comprises a series of actions that include various tools for improving employability, substantially increasing the chances of finding and maintaining a job. Cáritas develops projects along four lines: individualised routes for social and occupational integration, training for employment, self-employment and social economy initiatives.

The 'Integrated Itineraries of Social and Labour Insertion' this year aims to train a total of 927 people through training programmes in hospitality, IT, construction, organic farming, domestic service or workshop operator, among others. In addition, social economy and self-employment promotion itineraries will also be carried out.

The Cáritas programmes supported by Bankia will be developed in a total of ten autonomous communities: Albacete in Castilla-La Mancha; Ávila, Segovia and Valladolid in Castilla y León; La Rioja; Cartagena in Murcia; Getafe in Madrid; Guipúzcoa in País Vasco; Granada in Andalucía; Mallorca and Menorca in Islas Baleares; Orihuela (Alicante), Segorbe (Castellón) and Valencia in Comunidad Valenciana; and Las Palmas in Islas Canarias.

Bankia's director of Responsible Management, David Menéndez, has highlighted the historical collaboration with Cáritas and stressed that 'for Bankia, job promotion has always been a priority, which now also takes on a sense of urgency after the impact of the pandemic in increasing the number of unemployed people'. 'What better way to deal with this problem than in the hands of Cáritas, an association with which we have been working for years and that shares important values with us such as proximity, commitment and involvement of all teams', said Menéndez.

For her part, the general secretary of Cáritas Española, Natalia Peiro, , said that 'our Confederation has plenty of reasons to thank Bankia for its support, especially in this pandemic context, where actions aimed at the recovery of livelihoods of the most precarious people who have lost their jobs because of this social emergency'.

Bankia has supported Cáritas with a total of 3.18 million euros over the last eight years, which has allowed it to implement employment, entrepreneurship and social emergency programmes throughout the country. 13,038 people took part in these programmes, of which 20% were able to find a job.

Bankia

Bankia consolidates and reinforces its commitment to society through five priority lines of social action: employment and training, housing, local and rural development, disability and the environment. The bank is focusing its social investment on these areas and shows its commitment to society by involving the entire organisation and its employees. The Responsible Management policy is a capillary, grassroots programme that connects the bank's welfare work with its corporate objectives. This enables Bankia to prioritise five of the 17 SDGs: Climate action (SDG 13), Decent work and economic growth (SDG 8), Quality education (SDG 4), Sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11) and SDG 17, which encompasses them all, Alliances to achieve the objectives.