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Support for higher education is a firm part of Banco Santander’s commitment to communities. In 2014 the bank earmarked €187 billion for social investment, of which €146 million was invested in higher education projects.
“We have a clear purpose to contribute to the progress of people, companies and society as a whole,” says José Antonio Villasante, senior executive vice-president at the bank and director of Santander Universities. “We are convinced that support of higher education, not just universities but their students, is the best way to demonstrate our long term commitment to the communities in which we are present.”
The bank’s work with universities involves collaborative agreements implementing academic, financial and technology projects and developing international inter-university programmes to foster mobility of students, teachers and researchers.
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“Our most important achievement is that universities consider us one of their best allies”
Santander
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Scholarship programmes form a large part of the efforts. Last year over 28,000 students and teachers from 658 universities benefitted.
“Our most important achievement is that universities consider us one of their best allies,” says Villasante. “We collaborate with universities in the countries in which Banco Santander is present. Our agreements are designed to contribute to projects at the universities in question and to jointly monitor the progress of these projects.
“However, we also have important agreements with prestigious universities in countries where our presence is residual or even nonexistent, many times as a result of a request from one of the universities with which we collaborate because it is crucial to them,” he adds.
“This enriches the entire alliance, since opening up to other important university systems is strategic for our university network. This practice has allowed us to become familiar with new educational systems that are potential candidates for our support, thanks to the prestige that the bank has accumulated over the years within the international academic community through the activities of Santander Universities.”
Aside from the education initiatives, the bank demonstrates a broad and deep commitment to CSR. Santander works to extend its efforts in sustainability beyond the business itself. Offering an array of responsible and sustainable financial products and services, the bank strives to provide innovative solutions to clients with whom they are proven to build long-term relationships.
