SAMSON Trainees Donate EUR 5,000 to Support Vocational Training in Ethiopia

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As a family-owned company with social responsibility, we pursue the principle of making DONATIONS INSTEAD OF GIFTS. Therefore, we are for the most part refraining from making gifts to our business associates this Christmas and donate to charity instead.

Following this example, on Wednesday, 11 December 2019 the trainees at SAMSON AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT handed over a donation to Franz-Josef Fischer (CEO of the Strahlemann Foundation) and Pietro Sutera (member of the Strahlemann Foundation committee). The EUR 5,000 donation is intended for a project to train young people in Ethiopia.

The project is geared towards young Ethiopians living in the rural region of Guassa. It supports them to complete a vocational training and arranges employment in the local area or, alternatively, promotes self-employment through business start-up advice and micro-credits. This region in Ethiopia is heavily dependent on farming and is feeling the negative impact of climate change. Families and young people here urgently need support to find alternative sources of income.

The donation comes from the charity project of the OPPORTUNITEAM, a virtual company which was founded by the SAMSON trainees four years ago. They use the skills and knowledge they acquire during their training program to manufacture and market products and are now investing the proceedings in the support project in Guassa.

The decision among the members of the OPPORTUNITEAM in favor of the project in Ethiopia was unanimous. "Through our commitment, it is possible for us to make a contribution to allow young people in Africa to obtain a good job training," comments Herbert Emmerich, in charge of sales of the OPPORTUNITEAM. "The project in Guassa immediately caught our attention and the Strahlemann Foundation is a renowned institution."

OPPORTUNITEAM requires people from all vocational training fields offered at SAMSON to succeed. Trainees learning technical jobs develop and manufacture the products. Warehousing trainees are in charge of the required logistics. And trainees in the commercial and IT fields are responsible for marketing, order handling and controlling. The OPPORTUNITEAM portfolio comprises decorative metal and electric products developed and manufactured in the SAMSON training workshop as well as commercial-grade merchandise (e.g. T-shirts) designed by the team. Thanks to low raw material costs, the main added value is created by the work the trainees put into their products.

The aim of the Strahlemann Foundation is to promote training opportunities for young people all over the globe. The foundation launched together with partner companies, such as SAMSON, the vocational training project "Talent Company" in German schools. The project involves setting up workshops and events for young people as part of the vocational orientation process.