Stockholm, June 5, 2024 - The Acronis Cyber Foundation Program, a set of philanthropic initiatives designed to engage with partners on community development projects and provide volunteering opportunities to team members around the world, is proud to announce the start of construction of a new educational facility for a secondary school in Kenya. The project is taking place at Friends Secondary School Kibisi located in the Mbakalo ward in Kenya. In partnership with Gridheart and Core Health and Wealth International, the construction project will help its 1,200 students while upholding the Acronis Cyber Foundations Programs’ mission to help and empower children with modern educational infrastructure and learning environments.
“Digital education is crucial since it is an important connector to the rest of the world,” said Cleophas Chesoli, Founder/Executive Director, Core Health and Wealth International, an NGO in Kenya. “The partnership with Gridheart and the Acronis Cyber Foundation Program will widen the reach of digital education to the Namboko community. It is a gift to generations. Thank you!”
The Friends Secondary School Kibisi needs essential facilities such as a meeting hall, a library, and a computer lab. Currently, major school gatherings, including mentorship forums, chapel services, debate events, and parent-teacher association meetings, occur under a large tree located in the school field. While the open field is suitable for certain times of the year, it becomes inadequate during adverse weather conditions, particularly when it rains. To address these challenges, this project aims to construct a multi-purpose resource center for the school.
“We are delighted to partner with Gridheart on this project because the cloud provider has been a longtime reliable business partner of Acronis,” said Mikael Johansson, Regional Sales Director Nordics at Acronis. “In cooperation with the Acronis Cyber Foundation Program, its local partners in Kenya, and Gridheart, we will build brand new facilities for a school in Kenya. It is a very exciting initiative that we are proud to be a part of!”
The proposed center will include a meeting hall, which can also serve as a dining hall for students and teachers, as well as a computer laboratory and a library. Beyond fulfilling the school’s immediate needs, this project also provides additional benefits.
“We firmly believe education is key to children in Kenya and elsewhere. It might save them from a life of poverty and hunger, at least we hope so,” said Carl Hagström, CEO of Gridheart. “Collaborating with the Acronis Cyber Foundation Program was a simple decision because we all believe in positive grassroots change.”
The secondary school shares its border with Kibisi Primary School, which also faces challenges related to inadequate facilities. By expanding the secondary school’s infrastructure, the extra space will be utilized to benefit the primary school during periods when the secondary school students do not occupy the center.
The Acronis Cyber Foundation Program is focused on partnering with other organizations to make a difference together. Acronis invites all businesses, large or small, to engage in joint projects. To join our mission or to learn more, please visit www.acronis.org.
About Acronis Cyber Foundation Program
The Acronis Cyber Foundation Program is a corporate social responsibility project by Acronis, a global leader in cybersecurity and data protection. The Acronis Cyber Foundation Program works with a vast network of non-profit organizations and government institutions to implement philanthropic initiatives. The dedication and hard work of like-minded Acronis employees, partners, and friends make the projects organizationally and financially possible.
Since the program launched in 2018, it has been strongly focused on educational efforts. The program is engaged in school construction (implemented by a partnership with the Groundbreaker), IT skills training (in collaboration with Yellow Ribbon Fund, IMDA, and Integres), and other educational and humanitarian aid initiatives that benefit both children and adults. For more information, please visit www.acronis.org.
About Gridheart
Gridheart is leading provider of cloud-based solutions for MSP’s in the Nordics. In a digital era where cyber security is crucial, Gridheart offers world class solutions. We are specialized in delivering cloud services, and protecting digital assets in an ever changing cyber security landscape, where new threats continuously arise.
About Core Health and Wealth International
Core Health and Wealth International (CHWI) is a non-governmental organization working with rural communities and low-income urban settlements to improve their socio-economic well-being by providing capacity development through [social] entrepreneurship initiatives, education access, employment opportunities, and the development of employability skills.
About Acronis:
Acronis is a global cyber protection company that provides natively integrated cybersecurity, data protection, and endpoint management for managed service providers (MSPs), small and medium businesses (SMBs), and enterprise IT departments. Acronis solutions are highly efficient and designed to identify, prevent, detect, respond, remediate, and recover from modern cyberthreats with minimal downtime, ensuring data integrity and business continuity. Acronis offers the most comprehensive security solution on the market for MSPs with its unique ability to meet the needs of diverse and distributed IT environments.
A Swiss company founded in Singapore in 2003, Acronis has 15 offices worldwide and employees in 50+ countries. Acronis Cyber Protect is available in 26 languages in 150 countries and is used by over 20,000 service providers to protect over 750,000 businesses. Learn more at www.acronis.com.