Challenges and challenges of the Obra Social boosted by the Foundations involve the mental health, the digital gap or new ways of poverty
Education and internationalisation, between its priorities
With an investment that reached the 851 million euros during the last year, but that arrives at 7,823 millions in the last decade —según the accumulated details from 2014—, the sector CECA is consolidated as first private social investor in Spain. The Obra Social boosted by the companies associated with CECA (association that represents to CaixaBank, Kutxabank and Cajasur Bank, Abanca, Unicaja, Ibercaja Bank, Caixa Ontinyent, Colonya Pollença, Cecabank and to more than thirty foundations) completed nearly 81,000 activities that they reached to more than 30 million payees with that resource during 2023.
These figures are the reflection of the lever for the social development, especially for the vulnerablegroups, that drives the Obra Social, as stated by the spokesman of CECA, Alberto Aza, in the Forum «Committed to Galicia, a social work with a lot of vocation», that it organised the Iberian editorial Press with the three headers of the group in Galicia: LIGHTHOUSE OF VIGO, The Opinion of A Coruña and The Galician Mail this week.
The deputy director of the newspaper, Irene Bascoy, lowered the debate that it told also with the Fundación «territorial delegate la Caixa » in Galicia, Susan Santos and the Executive Director of Afundación, Pedro Otero. It centred from the first question the importance of the sector: «In March 2022, the chairman of the Economic And social Council (CES), the man of Vigo Antón Coasts, ensured that the Obra Social of the sector CECA is the second pillar of the welfare state in Spain», pointed out. Aza collected the glove and it defended that it is «an indispensable complement, a pillar for the initiatives promotion and support of the civil society in favour of the most vulnerable groups of our company». And, going up in the history, remembered «an Obra Social whose historic path is gone up to more than three centuries, with the appearance of the first mounts of pity, and that formalises later on its intention with the appearance of the savings banks at the beginning of the nineteenth century». In a banking ruled context for accurate figures and securities, the Obra Social gives back the computation to the company.
Furthermore, Susan Santos explained that the studies carried out by the Fundación «la Caixa » have allowed focusing its programmes to tackle the poverty from an all-inclusiveperspective, adapting to multifactorial nature of this problem area. This foundation assesses and measures constantly the impact in the context and the territory, adjusting the programmes according to change the needs, the person in charge revealed. An emergent phenomenon is the «multivulnerability», that expands the «fragility» to all the ages: alone and vulnerable older people, adults with difficulties of job access, and children in inequality or poverty situation. Thus, «the social work is adapted to new ways of poverty, designing interventions that they answer to this growing complexity », the expert indicated.
In its turn by word of mouth, Pedro Otero explained that Afundación, the Obra Social of Abanca, celebrates its tenth anniversary consolidating as the main social responsibility vehicle of the bank in Galicia. And its approach hones in on three strategic lines: support to the great town, culture promotion and education strengthening. In the area of great, Afundación tackles challenges of the longevity listening to the people, working in active aging and researching to adapt the programmes to its needs. «Afundación operates in eleven centres for older people in Galicia, with 15,000 members and 30,000 participating annuities », shelled. In the cultural field, the Obra Social of Abanca manages 78,000 m² in infrastructures and an outstanding art collection, with impact in the seven Galician cities principals. «In every area, whether it is for example via exhibitions, programmes intergeneracionales or proposals of education in securities», is looked for empoderar to the participants and promote its development, which squatter a significant part of the budget in Galicia.
Challenges and future
During the meeting was tackled not only the history and the current work, if not the challenges and future perspectives of the community project. In an environment in which the commitment of the foundations charges increasingly importance, the success of the Obra Social depends on an authentic surrounding area with the payees, allowing understanding and tackle its needs in a customised way. Additionally, of anticipating —incluso— to the public administrations.
The digital gap stands out as one of the current challenges principals. On the other hand, from the CECA the collaboration and the exchange of experiences is driven to international level via the Worldwide Savings Banks Institute and Retail Banks, chaired by Isidro Fainé. This organisation has set up a Social and Philanthropic Board that looks for visibilizar and share good work experience programs of the more than 6,000 companies to those which represents. The objective of this global network is learn from the experiences in every country and explore synergistic gain and cooperation opportunities to create joint programs of great extent, Alberto indicated Aza.
«The future of the Obra Social owes continue developing in the same line actual, with an approach in the detection and poverty new way analysis, especially in collaboration with the companies of the third sector. It is crucial to study closely the vulnerable environments and anticipate to the challenges, as the digital gap, the mental health, the undesired loneliness and the inequality in the job access », Susan Santos defended. While, Pedro Otero pondered on a lesson of the recent past: «The pandemic, that compelled to many foundations to quickly adapt, demonstrated the importance of the flexibility and of the skills to reply to new needs». It did not avoid neither the importance of aging actively and attend to the mental health, so much in great as in young, as crucial areas in which follow working. When it comes to the population dispersion and the attention to the rural one, Afundación promotes solutions to offer the same quality of service in all the areas.
Export knowledge
Lastly, reviewed that with the globalisation and the multiculturalidad more present in the communities, the social entities must learn and also export knowledge. As one shows of its adjustment, summoned the clubs of retired, «where the great met to play to the letters, but later evolved towards centres with services of leisure, training and attention professional, as a chiropody and psychology». Nowadays, call «them spaces +60» and not only offer services, but instead that they make good use of the experience of the great, promoting the voluntary work and the accompaniment.
«Now sit down part of something»
Afundación and Fundación «la Caixa » consider return the of its projects: of theatre for visibilizar the FIREBRAND to the resilience of the migrante
The emotive letter of a mother that it wanted express the impact that a theatrical work on the bullying in Vigo had in its son, a boy with disorder of spectrum autista (FIREBRAND) surprised to the team of Afundación. «Nos told which its son said him after seeing «Hugo's»work: Mom, have seen finally that am not only, that there are people as I. I am glad and because this me assistance to continue». «That phrase me still thrills», the person responsible for admitted Afundación, that in that instant caught on that the value of its work emerges to the large projects. «When see that you achieve connect in this way so intimate with someone, understand why are here”, the manager ponders.
They talked of a work that was represented in different points of Galicia and left print in the public. «The theatre was full, had more than 400 children seeing her», account the organiser. But the real test of the impact reached arrived shortly after, already in the social networks, that were filled of messages of families whose children had attended and they shared its impressions at home. “It is difficult to measure the success, but if the children arrive at house and they transmit the message, know that touched a significant»fibre.
Another successful example is the programme «CaixaProinfancia», of the Fundación «la Caixa » and that it hones in on break the transmission intergeneracional of the poverty and promote the socio-educational development integral to children between 0 and 18 years in Galicia. It is the case of a Venezuelan family settled in Vigo and whose older daughter confronted barriers to integrate in the educational environment, but it achieved finish its Academic studies and now studies a superior module of FP. Its brother moves forward successfully in the GCSE and its mother receives support to find employment and normalise its situation. «Now sit down part of something after believing that it did not be part of nothing», the youngster stated in one of the documentaries of the counted» project «Lives of the Fundación «la Caixa». From its implementation in 2016 in the 7 main cities of Galicia and in collaboration with 28 companies of the third sector, «CaixaProinfancia» offered support to 1,500 minors and 900 families, concentrating on a customised all-inclusive attention and offering from support school child to psychological support, leisure speech therapy or activities.
For years, the Obra Social of the sector CECA is had become a fundamental tool to fight against the inequality, the social exclusion and the risk of poverty, «demonstrating its essential role as an element vertebrador of the company», according to Alberto Aza. «The Obra Social is an essential complement to the welfare state, since offers agility, surrounding area and a skills of adjustment that the public policies, for its budgetary and political stiffness, often can not reach», the spokesman reasoned during the Forum «Committed to Galicia», in Vigo.
The sector CECA develops its charitable activity and social in several areas, that they try cover all sectors of the town and «allows a customised approach and a rapid response before the needs, as was demonstrated during the pandemic».
«We have follow maintaining the capillarity in listens it in Galicia» – aseguró— «that every time is bigger and multicultural».
«The future of the Obra Social is projected as an intense challenge, but with an approach in the cooperation», Alberto summed up Aza.
And already at the end of the Forum went out to collation the importance of the collaboration public-private, «since it allows summing synergistic gains and reply in a flexible way to the needs of the company, adjusting its programmes thanks to a continuous assessment, optimising resources and avoiding duplicities». That is, adapt or anticipate to the reality to act on her, the spokesman finished.
The Fundación «la Caixa » drives the social progress via various programmes that have a be able to transformer and a long-lasting impact, accompanying to the people in all phases of the life cycle. In this way, people in situation of vulnerability they can develop its potential, its skills and talent. Between its initiatives emphasises CaixaProinfancia, a programme whose main challenge is promote stock in socio-educational key to promote the children development and girls and its families, with the aim of generating opportunities of future and break the hereditary circle of the poverty. This programme emphasises for for its leadership, work in territorial network and extent, focused on reduce the alter the balance of. «We develop programmes with a tall one be able to of social»transformation, the territorial delegate expresses in Galicia, Susan Santos. The programmes of the Fundación «la Caixa » are backed for scientific managements, experts, and there is behind a study of the social requirements, ensures.
In its debate in the Forum «Committed to Galicia», the expert in Obra Social specified that the poverty no longer only affects who do not have employment, but instead to older people —o jóvenes— that, despite having pensions, do not achieve cover its basic needs. «To face these challenges is fundamental to promote a collaborative philanthropy. This approach not only creates immediate impact, but instead that it allows establishing transferable»work models, emphasised. On the parallel work to the one of the public administrations, Santos emphasised «the importance of the collaboration public-private that they can play the foundations: be more than complementary and build meetings.
Afundación has developed an educational broad infrastructure in Galicia, that includes from professional and nurseries training establishments until an innovative university. The education in securities is one of its pillars, arriving at nearly 690 educational centres in Galicia and benefiting annually to more than 120,000 students out of 5 and 16 years. In addition, has boosted from 2017 a financial education program that reaches annually to more than 200,000 girls and children. «The education has a transversal presence absolutely in all the programmes that we do; we never think the launch of a programme without seeing the different educational aspects that we can discuss», Pedro maintains Otero. «The education is understood of all-inclusive way, promoting abilities that help to exceed situations of vulnerability». Its innovative university emphasises for an only model present also in all the educational action of the company, that researches, designs and implements projects to contribute to transform.
