The Simón Bolívar Foundation Releases 2020 Annual Report highlighting efforts focused on supporting Venezuelans and others in need affected by the humanitarian crisis and the pandemic

The Foundation has issued its first public annual report, signaling a shift toward more transparency under the new leadership.

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The Simón Bolívar Foundation

Jul 19, 2021, 14:29 ET

HOUSTON, July 19, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Simón Bolívar Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit private foundation, today announced the release of its 2020 annual report. The Foundation is dedicated to improving the lives of the most vulnerable Venezuelans and others in need affected by disaster, conflict, and poverty, with special attention to children and mothers in and from Venezuela.

In 2020, the Foundation's new leadership assessed the dire humanitarian crisis in Venezuela and determined that the Foundation could significantly expand its impact – and reach the greatest number of Venezuelans and others in need – by providing grants to qualified charitable organizations and other non-governmental organizations operating in Venezuela and the region.

Accordingly, among other efforts, the Foundation awarded the following grants in 2020:

$100,000 in small grants targeted at increasing access to medicines and healthcare, expanding doctors' abilities to serve patients, and related objectives. Overall, these grants benefit more than 5,700 patients and 116 healthcare providers while also enabling NGOs to provide approximately 1,600 meals;
$248,395 in small grants to NGOs through the Hoy Invita Simón Small Grant Food Program, to benefit over 28,900 people in 8 cities. Among other accomplishments, these enabled approximately 11,500 grocery bags to be delivered to food insecure Venezuelan refugees in the United States and benefited 67 families with special needs children, and;
$1.65 million in medium-large grants to NGOs with longstanding presences in Venezuela and the region to provide approximately 2.396.000 meals and help nearly 84,350 people.

"We're very excited to release the Foundation's first public annual report and share the work we're doing daily to help the most vulnerable Venezuelans and others in need," said Mariela Poleo, President of the Simón Bolívar Foundation. "2020 was an extremely challenging year, and we focused on increasing impact, by benefiting a larger number of individuals, providing access to medicine and nutrition, improving the ability of medical professionals and caregivers to treat patients, and increasing the effectiveness of community organizations."

The Foundation also devoted significant resources during 2020 to help address the COVID-19 pandemic in Venezuela:

An Emergency Relief Fund provided $145,751 in support for PPE, medical equipment, and other supplies benefiting more than 1,800 health professionals and over 7,500 families.
The Small Grants COVID-19 Program awarded $427,631 to increase access to healthcare focused on combatting COVID-19, reaching more than 5,151 healthcare workers and benefiting 21 hospitals. These grants supported an estimated 320 food pantries to help provide approximately 426,368 meals.

In total, the 2020 expenditures were 71 percent high-impact grants, 24 percent to individual patients and medical hospital grants, and five percent for grant administration expenses. These amounts exclude in-kind donations from CITGO.

This is the first time the Foundation has issued a public report, part of the new leadership's commitment to transparency and good corporate governance.

Learn more about the Foundation and its annual report here: https://www.simonbolivarfoundation.org/presentations/SBFAnnualReport2020.pdf

About The Simón Bolívar Foundation

Simón Bolívar Foundation Inc. is the 501(c)(3) non-profit, private foundation of CITGO Petroleum Corporation. The Foundation supports charitable initiatives, leverages existing resources and provides charitable grants to qualified organizations to meet the immediate and long-term health needs of the most vulnerable individuals particularly in and from Venezuela with a special focus on the health and well-being of children and their mothers.

SOURCE The Simón Bolívar Foundation