The National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) and the Vale Foundation have signed partnerships that will strengthen the education and health of the population of the municipalities of Maranhão and Pará. The “Together for Health” fund will allow the expansion of the successful experience of the Health Cycle Program project in Maranhão and Pará. Added to it is the “Socio-environmental Notice – Education” that has as its object the project Literacy Trails, focused on improving basic education in public schools in the southeast of Pará.  

Together for Health is an initiative of BNDES to, in partnership with private donors, gather resources to expand access to health for the Brazilian population in the North and Northeast regions of Brazil. Mining company Vale is the first partner to join the shares and will contribute R$34 million to the project, with an equal amount made by the bank. 

Strengthening Primary Care with donations and professional training 

These resources will allow the expansion of the experience of the Vale Foundation’s Health Cycle Program project to Maranhão and Pará. The program contributes to the strengthening of primary care through donations of equipment and furniture and training of professionals in the area. 

“The Bank and Vale demonstrate once again the strength and importance of working together to guarantee better conditions directly to those who need it most. Together for Health sought to meet the so-called “gaps in care”, that is, to take health where there is still a deficiency or lack of care”, explains the director of Productive and Socio-Environmental Credit of BNDES, Bruno Aranha. 

For Maria Luiza Paiva, Vale’s Executive Vice President of Sustainability, the initiative acts at the tip of the social chain and aims to build more resilient communities. “Together for Health will help strengthen primary health care in municipalities, an indispensable area for guaranteeing access to fundamental rights”, she reinforces.

Focus on the quality of public education in southeastern Pará 

Approximately 34,000 students from 275 public schools in southeastern Pará will benefit, over the four years, from the partnership between the Vale Foundation and BNDES. The institutions will invest R$26.4 million in public basic education networks in the municipalities of Canaã dos Carajás, Curionópolis, Eldorado dos Carajás, Marabá, Tucumã, Ourilândia do Norte, Bom Jesus do Tocantins and an eighth municipality still under negotiation.  

 

“Through support for education, our goal is to contribute to expanding opportunities, strengthening public policies and promoting social transformation in the places where we operate. We have developed programs in the southeast of Pará that seek intersectoral action between education, health and social assistance involving partners, civil society and the government so that changes are lasting, promoting a dignified life and autonomy for communities”, says Pâmella De-Cnop, executive director of the Vale Foundation. 

“The education theme is a priority focus of BNDES, which aims to improve the quality of public education, as an improvement in school infrastructure and also actions aimed at training, management and technology. The initiatives recently approved by the Bank will benefit about 4 million students in 20,000 public schools located in several municipalities in the country. This result is only possible when we can find quality partners capable of enhancing the performance of BNDES in this agenda and the Vale Foundation has demonstrated skills to carry out these actions”, reports Bruno Aranha, director of Productive and Socio-Environmental Credit at BNDES.