OpenText Joins SAP in Supporting UNICEF's Clean Water for Ethiopia Project
Co-Sponsored Philanthropy Demonstrates Strong Partnership and Commitment by Companies to Global Health and Environmental Issues
MANNHEIM, Germany, April 12 /PRNewswire/ - OpenText™ (NASDAQ: OTEX) (TSX: OTC) today announced at the
eighth International SAP(R) Utilities Conference 2011 that it has joined SAP AG (NYSE:SAP) in co-sponsoring UNICEF's Clean Water for Ethiopia project. The companies committed to donating a total of €20,000 to UNICEF.
Emergency conditions are all too familiar to many families in Ethiopia. In 2010, flooding affected nearly one million people across several regions. Periodic shocks, such as droughts and heavy rains can add immediate crisis to chronic difficulties linked to high poverty levels, dependence on rain-fed agriculture, low availability of safe drinking water, poor hygiene and sanitation, and inadequate disease surveillance. As a result, children and women, especially pregnant women and children with poor nutritional status, are at higher risk of death and disease. Ethiopia has the highest mortality rate for children under the age of five, primarily from diarrhea. This is due to the lack of access to clean water and latrines, and lack of important knowledge about hygiene.
This donation from OpenText and SAP will assist UNICEF in building new water wells supplied with manual pumps, and separate latrines for boys and girls. These funds will also be put towards educating local residents on how to maintain the new equipment, as well as educating teachers and children in Ethiopia on the importance of proper hygiene. UNICEF expects that approximately 2,000 children will benefit from this donation.
"Whether matching employee donations to support Red Cross aid to the earthquake and tsunami victims in Japan or co-sponsoring UNICEF in an effort to provide clean drinking water to the people of Ethiopia, OpenText has an ongoing commitment to improving the health and well-being of people's lives and their environment," said Patrick Barnert, vice president of SAP Solutions at OpenText. "This sponsorship shows that, while we are focused on technology solutions, there are many other unique ways in which OpenText collaborates with its partners to improve people's lives."
The sponsorship of UNICEF's Clean Water for Ethiopia project by OpenText and SAP is part of SAP's global corporate responsibility program, which focuses on education and the environment, among other important issues. SAP previously donated €30,000 to UNICEF's Clean Water for Ethiopia project with StreamServe, which is now part of OpenText's ECM Suite. Today's donation from OpenText and SAP brings the total amount donated to UNICEF to 50,000 Euros, which is estimated to be helping approximately 50,000 children in Ethiopia.
"In a better run world, social responsibility is important to all and everyone does their part to help improve the living conditions of those less fortunate," said Anja Englehardt, project manager, SAP Utilities Conference, SAP AG. "As a global business leader, SAP is committed to such a goal, and supporting social projects is a key part of SAP's corporate responsibility efforts. We're pleased to continue our involvement in this meaningful project with OpenText and UNICEF. Through this initiative, we can help the people of Ethiopia achieve multiple synergistic effects by combining all-season access to a precious resource - water - with the transfer of knowledge to children and their parents and the education of locals, helping them to help themselves in the long term."
UNICEF is currently working with the Government of Ethiopia, other U.N. agencies and communities to respond to the needs of more than seven million people, including six million children who live in areas vulnerable to natural disasters and political tensions - including the Afar, Amhara, Gambella, Oromiya, Somali, Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples (SNNP) and Tigray regions. Whether the region receives too much rain or not enough, both situations put access to safe water for drinking, hygiene and sanitation at risk. UNICEF will help 480,000 people in drought- and flood-affected areas maintain access to safe water. For further information on UNICEF's continued aid to Ethiopia and how you may help, please visit: http://www.unicef.org/ethiopia/index.html
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About OpenText
OpenText, a global ECM leader, helps organizations manage and gain the true value of their business content. OpenText brings two decades of expertise supporting 100 million users in 114 countries. Working with our customers and partners, we bring together leading Content Experts™ to help organizations capture and preserve corporate memory, increase brand equity, automate processes, mitigate risk, manage compliance and improve competitiveness. For more information, visit www.opentext.com.
Open Text Forward-looking Statement
Certain statements in this press release may contain words considered forward-looking statements or information under applicable securities laws. These statements are based on the OpenText's current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about the operating environment, economies and markets in which the company operates. These statements are subject to important assumptions, risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict, and the actual outcome may be materially different. OpenText's assumptions, although considered reasonable by the company at the date of this press release, may provide to be inaccurate and consequently its actual results could differ materially from the expectations set out herein. For additional information with respect to risks and other factors which could occur, see the OpenText's Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other securities filings with the SEC and other securities regulators. Unless otherwise required by applicable securities laws, OpenText disclaims any intention or obligations to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
SAP Forward-looking Statement
Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "intend," "may," "plan," "project," "predict," "should" and "will" and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations The factors that could affect SAP's future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including SAP's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.
Copyright © 2011 by Open Text Corporation. OPENTEXT is a trademark or registered trademark of Open Text Corporation in the United States of America, Canada, the European Union and/or other countries. SAP and all SAP logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP AG in Germany and in several other countries. This list of trademarks is not exhaustive. Other trademarks, registered trademarks, product names, company names, brands and service names mentioned herein are property of Open Text Corporation or other respective owners.
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