The Western Union Foundation has furthered its commitment to increasing access and improving the quality of education globally through its 2013 first quarter grant commitment of more than US$1.2 million to nonprofit non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

To address the lack of quality global education, The Western Union Company and The Western Union Foundation have launched a new program called Education for Better, a three-year commitment to growing young minds through strategic grants that focus on secondary education and vocational training. As part of this commitment, the Western Union Foundation pledged an average of $10,000 per day for more than 1,000 days in potential grant funding.

“The lack of universal access to quality education is a significant problem with a very clear solution,” said Patrick Gaston, president of the Western Union Foundation. “Through Education for Better, we look forward to making a direct impact through our grant-making and develop collaborations with NGOs, business partners and the public sectors that are committed to expanding educational opportunities for global communities.”

For 774 million people around the world, the lack of education is a barrier to economic inclusion¹. In Sub-Saharan Africa, as many as 73 percent of students don’t attend secondary school, largely due to cost². And, in Europe, one in five students don’t reach minimum skill levels to function in society³.

Western Union’s Agents are already rallying around the Education for Better cause, matching Western Union Foundation grants to support education in Africa, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and the Americas. The Western Union Foundation works closely with Western Union’s Agents around the world to support educational goals.

To address these issues, following is a sample of the NGOs that the foundation has committed to support in Q1 2013:

Africa: In Kenya, a grant will support KickStart, a program that focuses on small business training for farmers to help them learn skills to increase their income. businesses.

Asia: The Western Union Foundation will support Give2Asia programs that focus on vocational education for low-income families in China, India, the Philippines, and Fiji/Samoa.

Europe: A grant to the Vielfalter Initiative will support cultural diversity education in more than 100 schools throughout Austria.

India: Through Divya Chaya Trust, a grant will support computer literacy programs, English training, and career counseling helping youth from economically weak families secure opportunities for higher education and vocational training.

Sources: 1.United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), 2.Global Campaign for Education 3.Equity and Quality in Education: Supporting Disadvantaged Students and School, OECD, 2012

About Western Union

The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a leader in global payment services. Together with its Vigo, Orlandi Valuta, Pago Facil and Western Union Business Solutions branded payment services, Western Union provides consumers and businesses with fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around the world, to send payments and to purchase money orders. As of March 31, 2013, the Western Union, Vigo and Orlandi Valuta branded services were offered through a combined network of approximately 515,000 agent locations in 200 countries and territories. In 2012, The Western Union Company completed 231 million consumer-to-consumer transactions worldwide, moving $79 billion of principal between consumers, and 432 million business payments. For more information, visit www.westernunion.com.

About The Western Union Foundation

The Western Union Foundation is dedicated to creating a better world, where the ability to realize dreams through economic opportunity is not just a privilege for the few but a right for all. With the support of The Western Union Company, its employees, Agents, and business partners, The Western Union Foundation works to realize this vision by supporting education and disaster relief efforts as pathways toward a better future. Our combined social ventures efforts make life better for individuals, families and communities around the world. Since its inception, The Western Union Foundation has committed more than $86.9 million in grants and other giving to more than 2,627 nongovernmental organizations in more than 130 countries and territories. To learn more, visit www.westernunionfoundation.org.

Western Union

Western Union

The Western Union Company, a leader in global payment services, believes access to financial services is a necessity. Western Union moves money reliably and quickly to almost every country - and we do it for extraordinary people seeking a better life and for businesses that generate jobs and opportunity.

Our business changes lives for the better. So does the Western Union Foundation: since 2001, the Western Union Foundation has awarded more than $101.1 million in grants to more than 2,730 nongovernmental organizations in more than 135 countries and territories..

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