Solidarity on the move from Valencia to Benin aboard the Grande Senegal

The Grimaldi Group has contributed to a new international solidarity initiative launched by the Spanish NGO Juntos por la Vida, involving several leading operators in the port and logistics sector of Valencia.

In the Spanish port on 15 November, a container carrying humanitarian aid was loaded onto the vessel Grande Senegal, bound for Cotonou, Benin. Transport was granted free of charge by the Grimaldi Group, which also took part in the shipment through its subsidiary Valencia Terminal Europa; the latter offered complimentary handling and storage services at its facilities in the port of Valencia.

The container, donated by APM Terminals and Maersk, was packed full of school, sports and musical equipment for an educational institution in Benin. Also, the container itself will later be converted into a music room, thereby expanding training opportunities for local youth. The initiative also received essential support from the Centro Portuario de Empleo de Valencia (CPEV) and Grupo Torres.

The arrival of the container at the Valencia Terminal Europa facilities was celebrated at a small event attended by representatives of all the organizations involved: Clara Arnal and Maite Díaz, respectively President and Volunteer Coordinator of the Juntos por la Vida foundation; Ezequiel Clérigues, West Africa Line Manager at Grimaldi Logística España; Oscar Roa, Assistant Manager of Valencia Terminal Europa; Miguel Ruíz, Head of Labour Relations at APM Terminals Spanish Gateways; and Daniel Llera and José Francisco Pardo, respectively General Director, and Deputy Director and Head of Legal Services & Labour Relations at CPEV.

This is not the first initiative carried out together with Juntos por la Vida; in fact, the Grimaldi Group has been supporting the NGO in sending educational materials and other humanitarian aid to Benin for some years now. This is a fine example of cooperation between companies and non-profit organizations for an important goal: social and educational development in the most vulnerable countries.