Western Union Initiative Passes 1 Million Mark

On the day of the 2015 UEFA Europa League final between FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk and Sevilla FC, the competition’s global partner Western Union and the Western Union Foundation have announced that their PASS initiative has reached its goal of one million passes, which in turn support better education for children globally.

Launched in September 2012, the PASS initiative aimed to turn every successful pass made during the group and knock out stages since the start of the 2012/13 UEFA Europa League into funding that supports secondary education for young people.

With the goal of supporting the delivery of one million days of education by the end of 2015, Western Union committed to a $1.8m, three-year grant through the Western Union Foundation to support UNICEF’s secondary education programs for youth in ten countries. 

Patrick Gaston, president, Western Union Foundation, said: “Moving money for better is at the heart of what we do, and education is one of the main reasons Western Union customers send money.

“According to UNICEF, 63 million adolescents globally are not enrolled in secondary or vocational education. It’s a tremendous loss of economic and human potential, since each extra year of school can increase an individual’s potential economic opportunity.”

“Three years ago, at the start of the Western Union sponsorship of the UEFA Europa League, we set out to deliver on our commitment. Today, I am proud to say that we have delivered on that commitment to provide access to better education and the projects supported by PASS funds are already making a difference. 

“I’d like to express my thanks to all those involved in the initiative, particularly UNICEF, which has been implementing critically-needed education programs to help children complete school and have a brighter future, as well as all the players, fans, customers and staff who have all contributed.”

The PASS initiative supports educational projects including teacher training and curriculum development, financial literacy, vocational and life skills training for adolescents and school improvements.

Funding has already been delivered to support UNICEF education programs in Brazil, Jamaica, Senegal, Nigeria, China, Morocco and Turkey, with funding scheduled to be delivered to programmes in Colombia, Mexico and Romania this year.

During its three seasons, the PASS initiative, has also attracted some high profile support within the sport. Global PASS ambassador Patrick Vieira launched the initiative at the start of the 2012/13 UEFA Europa League season and more recently travelled to Senegal, the country where he was born, to see for himself the work being done.

Other players who have lent their support during the initiative include USA and Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard, who led a campaign calling on fans to PASS For School; Nigerian football international Jay Jay Okocha, who went back to former club Eintracht Frankfurt in Germany to meet with fans; and Brazilian football legend Roberto Carlos, who met students benefiting from UNICEF programs in Istanbul, Turkey, in February 2014.

Marc Audrit, vice president, global brand at Western Union, commented: “Football is a global language and we wanted to tap into that as a fundamental part of our sponsorship. By harnessing the power of football to raise awareness, and funding, for the unmet educational needs of young people, PASS has helped us deliver a message to the world that passes make a difference both on and off the pitch.”