MANILA, Philippines - Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation’s (Shell) Movement Against Malaria (MAM) program bagged the “Best Photo Award†in the health category in the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines’ (AmCham) 5th Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Photo Competition.
The MAM photo entitled “Laying Out the Net of Life†bested a total of 126 photos entered by 18 AmCham member companies. Other Shell entries were also declared finalists in five out of the six categories in the 5th AmCham CSR photo competition.
“This competition serves as a creative platform for us to demonstrate how we work to improve the physical, mental and emotional health of people living in malaria endemic provinces, where medical help and necessary technology are not readily accessible,†says Shell social investment manager Jackie Ampil expressing her appreciation for the award and to AmCham for consistently promoting values and making contributions that promote Philippine development. “Also, the AmCham photo competition is one way we connect to the people and show them that the needs of our less fortunate countrymen and women are not being neglected.â€
US Ambassador Harry K. Thomas Jr. thanked the AmCham and all the participating companies for their efforts in improving the life of Filipinos in six major areas of development that directly affect their welfare and social progress. These are: environment, education, health, livelihood, peace and disaster risk management. These are also the categories by which the photo entries were evaluated and wherein one photo is chosen as the winner per category.
The awarding of winners was held on April 1 at the Glorietta 1 Activity Center, Makati City.
Movement Against Malaria is a nationwide malaria prevention and elimination program in the Philippines implemented by Pilipinas Shell Foundation, Inc. (PSFI), the social arm of Shell. The program aims to reduce malaria cases through early case detection and treatment at the community level. The program which started in 2010, was an offshoot of the successful implementation of Kilusan Ligtas Malaria (KLM), expanded its coverage from 5 to 40 endemic provinces in the Philippines through a consolidated grant of more than $45 million from The Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. It is implemented by PSFI together with the Department of Health (DOH) and WHO. The program aims to contribute to nation-building by disseminating information on how to prevent malaria and providing access to healthcare and tools to eliminate one of the world’s most deadly diseases.