Telenor Grants BGN 107,000 in IT Equipment to Sofia School

Telenor donated BGN 107,000 to 19^th Elin Pelin School in Sofia for modernisation of its Leadership Centre with up-to-date IT equipment. That was announced by the company’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Stein-Erik Vellan at a special ceremony that was attended by Sofia Mayor Ms. Yordanka Fandakova and the school’s principal Ms. Detelina Arnaudova.

The Leadership Centre consists of 9 labs, including entrepreneurs’ lab, English, German and Norwegian language labs, mathematics, geography and IT labs, as well as a library. Thanks to Telenor’s donation these  will be equipped with interactive whiteboards, multimedia, laptops and ultrathin energy-efficient personal computers. The high-tech classrooms also feature student response system, which allow students to participate in lectures by submitting responses to interactive questions using remote clicker devices. Responses are collected by specially designed software and displayed on the teacher’s laptop.

“We at Telenor support the up-to-date approach towards education and believe that every child in Bulgaria needs to have access to new technology and a learning environment that helps them achieve their full potential. We have that kind of environment here, in 19th Elin Pelin School which is why we decided to fund the purchasing of IT equipment at this center. I firmly believe that today we invest in Bulgaria’s future leaders,” Mr. Vellan said.

“The model of the new and advanced school that we see in Sofia’s 19^th Elin Pelin School is a result of the joint efforts of institutions, parents, teachers and business. I would like to thank Telenor for their support for the project‘, Sofia Mayor Ms. Yordanka Fadakova said.

The donation is part of Telenor’s long-term program to support Bulgarian education and young people. Each year the company holds a campaign to raise awareness about children’s online safety and give parents practical advice on the issue. Moreover, Telenor was the first telecom in Bulgaria to introduce a filter that blocks web domains containing child abuse materials. Further on, the company will extend its support for Bulgarian schools by giving them the chance to win funding for modernisation of their learning environment.

Telenor is a leading telecommunication company with 3.9 million active subscribers in Bulgaria. As of end-2014, the company’s services are available to 99.98% of Bulgaria’s population, covering over 99.50% of the country’s territory, and Telenor UMTS network covers 98.66% of the population. By November 4, 2014, the company operated under the GLOBUL brand. Since August 1, 2013, it has been a part of Telenor Group which operates in 13 countries in Europe and Asia and has more than 186 million subscribers.