The initiative seeks to benefit 350,000 people by 2030:

• The call is aimed at non-profit organizations, such as NGOs, educational institutions and foundations, interested in developing innovative training programs for people between 55 and 70 years of age.

• Interested organizations can apply at www.entel.cl/fondo55 until November 30, 2024.

The technology and telecommunications company Entel launched the “55+ Fund”, which will provide $ 300 million to one or more non-profit organizations, such as NGOs, educational institutions or foundations, that propose innovative initiatives to develop digital skills that impact people over 55 years of age.

“We prioritize people between 55 and 70 years of age, as they are a segment that is currently underserved; most programs to reduce the digital divide are focused on people over 65 years of age. However, at Entel, following the good practices of developed economies, with which we share the trends of population aging, decreasing employability from the age of 55 and an accelerated process of digital transition, we have decided to take a step forward and advance in a comprehensive model for the development of innovative digital skills initiatives with impact in four specific areas,”, explained the manager of Sustainability and Communications at Entel, Francisca Florenzano.

The application period will be open until November 30, 2024, through the website www.entel.cl/fondo55 Entities that have innovative projects with an impact on digital inclusion in one of the following thematic areas will be eligible to apply:

1. Promote autonomy in the digital world, to develop new skills in this group so that no one is left behind in the use of technologies.
2. Strengthen social and community ties to generate participation and collaboration, in addition to preventing and managing emergency situations.
3. To increase the level of financial education and health, to provide tools that allow them to become informed and better manage their finances.
4. Develop digital skills for employability, to reduce the barriers to employability faced by people in this segment, providing tools so that they can develop in a better way.

“We have a high rate of connections in the country, however the use of the Internet is mainly to obtain information from search engines, which is a basic use, but not for advanced activities. In fact, according to data from País Digital's study 'Internet Use Gap', in Chile, of the 80% of the population that accesses the Internet, only 34% uses this technology in an advanced way. We aim to be a contribution in this line and our goal is ambitious, we want to reach more than 350 thousand people by 2030 and, for this, we are looking for strategic allies, such as NGOs and foundations, to help us with this challenge of developing digital skills” , said the executive.

It should be noted that according to data from the GSMA, an organization that brings together most of the world's telecommunications companies, the development of digital skills has a multiplier effect, and for every person trained, one more benefits from this new knowledge; and in the case that the training is specifically focused on the use of mobile devices, the average use of data triples.

Commitment to sustainability

Entel has developed several projects over the years aimed at this segment, such as the 70+ Plan, which has exclusive benefits for senior citizens; the work with the Conecta Mayor Foundation, and the process of the gradual shutdown of the 2G network, where a plan has been implemented to replace and enable equipment nationwide. All these initiatives are part of Entel's Sustainability Strategy 2024-2030.