The GE Foundation today announced a donation of US$100,000 to provide immediate relief to Nigeria after several months of heavy rain and devasting flooding. The donation will fund international humanitarian agency CARE (https://www.CARE.org/) to support local emergency response authorities and volunteers in Kogi State. Specifically, the donation will help address the immediate food security and hygiene needs in the region for approximately 800 households, including up to 2,500 individuals. In addition to the organization’s donation, GE (http://www.GE.com) employees can support relief efforts through its Matching Gifts Program.

“We are proud to work with our humanitarian relief partner CARE to help Nigerian families recover from the devasting flooding,” said Linda Boff, President, GE Foundation, and Vice President, GE.

 “Addressing the ongoing critical food insecurities and health concerns resulting from the tragic flooding remains a top priority,” said Mohammed Mijindadi, President of GE Nigeria. “This grant will help alleviate the hardships that many families are having to endure especially as we go into the holiday season. CARE is the best partner for our local team to work with on the ground to address urgent hunger and health needs while spreading goodwill during these trying times.”

GE employees who make eligible donations to CARE or other participating charities can register for a match with the GE Foundation’s Matching Gifts program, which supports employees’ personal philanthropy and charitable giving by providing a 1:1 match. The GE Foundation created the concept of a corporate matching gift program in 1954. Today, the program continues to serve as an important element of the Foundation’s portfolio, with gifts matched in 2021 totaling $6.2 million. 

“We are honored to receive this grant from the GE Foundation, which will help us distribute the most important basic needs to affected Nigerians, as well as conduct a public hygiene campaign to help stem the risk of cholera, COVID-19 and other public health threats,” said Hussaini Abdu, Country Director of CARE Nigeria.

GE’s Disaster and Humanitarian Relief program respond to major global disasters and humanitarian crises, drawing on GE’s people, technology, and other resources to reduce suffering and hasten recovery. Since 2020, GE Foundation’s philanthropic contribution in disaster relief totaled nearly $7.2 million, which was largely focused on the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Recently, the GE Foundation partnered with CARE to support flood relief efforts in Kentucky (https://bit.ly/3HT0Gnr) and humanitarian relief in Sri Lanka (https://bit.ly/3hEQYum). In Nigeria, GE has implemented numerous corporate social initiatives including relief efforts to displaced communities, providing school supplies to orphanages and charitable organizations and financial support to help expand cancer screening and diagnostics  to reduce cancer mortality rates in the country. GE remains committed to preparing for and responding to future natural disasters and humanitarian crises, diligently maximizing the impact of our financial, technological, and human resources.