Western Union and Sogexpress Innovate: Remittances to Fund Renewable Energy in Haiti
July 23 2015 - 9:00AM
Business Wire
New Klere Ayiti initiative seeks to address
Haiti’s energy poverty
The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU), a leader in global payment
services, and Western Union Agent Sogexpress, a leading Haitian
money transfer and payment services company and subsidiary of
Sogebank, today launched a new platform that enables the Haitian
diaspora to use remittances to finance renewable energy products
for families and friends in Haiti, where only 28 percent of the
population has access to electricity1.
The platform features a dedicated website that allows local
customers and senders living abroad to pre-order the solar light
kit of their choice at www.klereayiti.com. They then use their
order number to complete payment at participating Western Union
Agent locations around the world via the Western Union® Quick PaySM
platform. Orders will be fulfilled by Sogexpress in three to five
working days.
Western Union and Sogexpress’ corporate commitments provide an
ecological and viable solution to address Haiti’s “energy poverty”
challenge. The two companies are key partners of the ‘Klere Ayiti’
– “Light-up Haiti” – initiative made possible by technical
assistance funded by the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), a
member of the Inter-American Development Bank Group, and the United
States Agency for International Development (USAID), and provided
by Arc Finance. The objective of ‘Klere Ayiti’ is to catalyze new
commercial business models that will increase consumer access to
clean energy in Haiti. The model is based on one piloted in a
previous MIF-Arc Finance-Sogexpress project executed in 2012 to
2013. The remittance platform will add a new financing option to
enable Haitians to access larger systems that have economic,
health, and social benefits.
Sean Mason, Vice President for Western Union in the
Caribbean said, “The Klere Ayiti initiative is a real life
example of the positive impact Western Union aims to achieve when
we say we are Moving Money for Better. Through our services, we
have seen the quality of life improve, education levels lift, jobs
created and economies grow. We are committed to the collaborative
approach of delivering renewable energy products, through a
technologically innovative process of purpose-directed payments,
with multiple benefits for the people of Haiti.”
Franck Lanoix, Sogexpress Executive Vice President, is
enthusiastic about the initiative and the impact that solar energy
will have on the lives of everyday Haitians at home and in small
businesses. “At Sogexpress we want to help all Haitians benefit
from our natural resource – an abundance of sunlight. With these
solar lighting kits children can study at night, families will feel
more safe and secure, businesses can stay open longer and people
can charge their phones. Having a cleaner and more accessible
alternative for electricity with the solar light kits has the
potential to transform the lives of millions of Haitians,” he
said.
Haiti receives substantial remittances inflows every year –
approximately US$2 billion in 2014 according to the Multilateral
Investment Fund. Remittances represent over 20 percent of GDP2 -
mainly from the million-plus Haitians living in the United States
and Canada. The average monthly remittance size is US$60 to $200,
and a substantial portion of this is used to pay for energy,
including fuel for lighting, cooking and transportation3.
About Sogexpress
Société Générale Haitienne de Transferts S.A. (Sogexpress) is
the leading money transfer and payment service company in Haiti.
Sogexpress started operations in October 2002 with the goal of
offering diversified payment services through a national network
that has high technology standards, efficient operations and
competent personnel. Sogexpress provides money transfer services as
an authorized agent of Western Union. Sogexpress has become an
important provider of phones, phone cards and electronic recharge
(pap-padap) in Haiti. Sogexpress has national coverage with 57
branch locations in Haiti.
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, 2015, the Western Union, Vigo and Orlandi Valuta branded
services were offered through a combined network of over 500,000
agent locations in 200 countries and territories and over 100,000
ATMs and kiosks. In 2014, The Western Union Company completed 255
million consumer-to-consumer transactions worldwide, moving $85
billion of principal between consumers, and 484 million business
payments. For more information, visit www.westernunion.com.
1 Source: OLADE, Latin American Energy Organization
“Comprehensive Planning for Electric Power Supply in Haiti –
Expansion of the Supply for Electricity Generation”2 Source:
Maldonado, R., Hayem, M., "Remittances to Latin America and the
Caribbean Set a New Record High in 2014." Multilateral Investment
Fund, Inter-American Development Bank. Washington, D.C., 2015.3
Source: Arc Finance, Market Research Study, 2009
WU-G
View source
version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150723005334/en/
Western UnionUS and Canada:Sarah Meske, +1
720-332-2796sarah.meske@westernunion.comorLatin America and
Caribbean:Paula Barifouse, +1
954-378-4175paula.barifouse@westernunion.comorSogexpressJean
Ronald Eliacin, +509 44162155orMarketing Department, + 509 2229
5000 Ext 6035
Western Union (NYSE:WU)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
Western Union (NYSE:WU)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024