Dutch National Postcode Lottery donates 1.63 million euros to UNHCR
Dutch National Postcode Lottery donates 1.63 million euros to UNHCR
DE BILT, The Netherlands, February 1 (UNHCR) - The Dutch National Postcode Lottery has donated more than 1.6 million euros to the UN refugee agency for programmes in the Great Lakes region and to develop solar lighting for refugee camps in Chad.
At a gala event in the town of De Bilt on Thursday evening, National Postcode Lottery Managing Director Ellen Damsma handed a symbolic cheque for 1 million euros to Nick Van Praag, UNHCR's director of external relations.
The Lottery's 2008 contribution in fact totals 1.63 million euros. Most of the unearmarked funds will be used to help refugees in the Great Lakes region of Africa, but a portion of the donation will be invested in developing solar lighting for refugee camps in Chad.
This project is part of the "Hier" ("Here") climate campaign, which is supported by many beneficiaries of National Postcode Lottery funding in the fight against global warming through innovation.
"Our organization can only fulfil its mandate with the support of donors. That is why we are grateful to the National Postcode Lottery, a major supporter of our work for several years now," Van Praag told guests at Thursday's event.
The National Postcode Lottery, the Netherlands' main charity lottery, has been a supporter of UNHCR's work for the past six years. Last year, it was UNHCR's third largest private sector donor with a contribution of 2.58 million euros.
Meanwhile, UNHCR, in a new partnership, last week received a contribution of US$345,000 from the Swedish Postcode Foundation for a sustainable energy project in the Darfur region of Sudan.
