Simón Bolívar Foundation Announces $1 Million in Humanitarian Health Grants

HOUSTON, Aug. 11, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Simón Bolívar Foundation, the charitable, private foundation of CITGO Petroleum Corporation, has entered into grant agreements with the following three prominent international nonprofit organizations, AID FOR AIDS International, FOOD FOR THE POOR INC. and the PanAmerican Development Foundation (PADF), to donate one million dollars as part of its Medium/Large Grants Program for Humanitarian Health.

These grant agreements are an important milestone for the Foundation's new focus of providing funding to help with Venezuela's humanitarian crisis, building capacity, transferring knowledge, and empowering nongovernmental organizations to help vulnerable individuals, especially those that focus on mothers and children in and from Venezuela. The grantees not only have proven experience with humanitarian aid and long-standing presence in Latin America, but, also have a consolidated track record of performance thanks to a rooted distribution and support network that can reach vulnerable populations in the region.

The Medium/Large Humanitarian Health program includes donations ranging from $250,00 to $500,000, with expected project timeframes of up to one year. Participation is limited to U.S. registered 501 (c)(3) organizations or qualified foreign public charities with a long-standing record in providing humanitarian aid and demonstrated capabilities to perform projects that address the challenging environment in both Venezuela and the region. Qualified organizations were invited to present proposals that were evaluated by an independent Community Advisory Board and selected by the Simon Bolivar Foundation based on certain criteria, including meeting the Foundation's objective of providing access to medicines, nutrition and wellbeing to vulnerable individuals impacted by Venezuela's humanitarian crisis, budget and cost-effectiveness, project impact, time frame, and sustainability over time.  

Benefited Projects

AID FOR AIDS International (AFA) will use the grant for its Healing Venezuela program to supply nutritional supplements for 6,000 children and teenagers in need in five states and the Capital District in Venezuela for six months. AID FOR AIDS International is a 501(c)(3) organization committed to empowering at-risk communities. It was founded in 1996 to recycle unused, unexpired Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) medication and redistribute it among patients in need around the world. Years of work with pharmaceutical companies and United Nations agencies allowed it to expand its scope of action and create a specific program called "Healing Venezuela" to offer humanitarian relief to vulnerable mothers and children in Venezuela. 

The Pan American Development Foundation will provide 1.4 metric tons (MT) of medicines to assist 7,000 vulnerable Venezuelans over six months. PADF is a nonprofit organization that believes in creating a hemisphere of opportunity for all. For nearly 60 years, it has served the most vulnerable communities, investing resources throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. PADF partners with and enables civil society, governments and the private sector for the greater good in the region. PADF has been implementing a regional response to the Venezuela migration crisis since 2018.

FOOD FOR THE POOR INC.  will devote the funds to the implementation of a COVID-19 food assistance program for 36,000 Venezuelan migrants in Bogotá and Cúcuta, Colombia. Food For The Poor is an interdenominational Christian ministry providing food, emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicine, educational materials, homes, support for orphaned and abandoned children, care for the elderly, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance to primarily 17 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.

About the Simón Bolívar Foundation
The Simón Bolívar Foundation Inc. was established in 2006 as the 501(c)(3) non-profit, private foundation of CITGO Petroleum Corporation. The SBF serves as a catalyst to transform lives by connecting non-profits and community leaders to better improve the quality of life through the support of health initiatives. The SBF supports new initiatives, leverages existing resources and invests in organizations to meet the immediate and long-term health needs of the most vulnerable. The SBF supports those in need in and from Venezuela as well as the communities in which we live and work in the United States.

About CITGO:
Headquartered in Houston, Texas, CITGO Petroleum Corporation is a recognized leader in the refining industry with a well-known brand. CITGO operates three refineries located in Corpus Christi, Texas; Lake Charles, La.; and Lemont, Ill., and wholly and/or jointly owns 47 terminals, nine pipelines and three lubricants blending and packaging plants. With approximately 3,400 employees and a combined crude capacity of approximately 769,000 barrels-per-day (bpd), CITGO is ranked as the fifth-largest, and one of the most complex independent refiners in the United States. CITGO transports and markets transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products and supplies a network of approximately 4,700 locally owned and operated branded retail outlets in 30 states and the District of Columbia. CITGO Petroleum Corporation is owned by CITGO Holding, Inc. For more information, visit www.CITGO.com.

SOURCE CITGO Corporation

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