OVERVIEW OF PHILIP MORRIS INTERNATIONAL INC., PROJECTS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH NGOS TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO EDUCATION IN TOBACCO-GROWING COMMUNITIES

In Serbia, through a partnership with civic association, ‘Green Key  ’ since 2008, Philip Morris International has been helping to improve access to education for children from tobacco-growing families in the country and encourage greater awareness of environmental practices. The project, implemented over a three-year timeframe with different community groups in the major tobacco-growing areas in Serbia, provides grants for small community-based projects that have been carefully selected together with local farmers.  One example is the ‘EduCamp’;  here, children get involved in ecological projects to protect the environment together with a special focus on initiatives aimed at empowering young people to get more involved in local community work and civil society organizations. A follow-up piece of the project, entitled, ‘EcoEnvironment,’ helped to carry out ‘green’ renovation works in two local schools in tobacco regions in Southern Serbia, after which pupils took part in a good environmental practices workshop and took a quiz on the subject, together with attending a grand opening of the refurbished school premises with their parents. More recently, the program helped provide 1,500 pupils with literature classes and a course in sustainable development (known as ‘EduCaravan’).