Andree Birnbaum, Femmes en Détresse, receiving the cheque from Ninian Wilson, Vodafone;
Credit: Ali Sahib, Chronicle.lu
On Monday 2 June 2025, the Vodafone Foundation in Luxembourg-Kirchberg made a presentation of a cheque worth €100,000 to Femmes en Détresse (FED) in the Grand Duchy.
Ninian Wilson, CEO of Vodafone Procure & Connect and Vodafone Group’s Supply Chain Management Director, made the presentation to Andrée Birnbaum, Director General of the charity, and talked about the fundraising, explaining that last year they organised a fundraising initiative to coincide with the 40th anniversary of Vodafone’s first analogue telephone call in Britain, on 1 January 1986.
In January, around 1,300 people attended an event featuring entertainers including the comedian Michael McIntyre, the cast of Mamma Mia, and Gary Barlow, amongst others. As a result of this fundraising initiative, they raised money to be distributed between three very different causes:
- UNHCR, to help those in refugee camps;
- Men that Matter, a men’s mental health charity based in Glasgow, the 2nd year of supporting them; and
- Femmes en Détresse, supporting victims of domestic abuse, marking a number of years support.
In talking about giving back to the community, he said “It ties our relationship here in Luxembourg more with the community”.
Andrée Birnbaum then talked about the FED organisation and how the funds will be used. She thanked Vodafone for the “enormous amount”; she mentioned that housing is one of the challenges they face, and they would like to put the donation towards an apartment to shelter women from domestic abuse. She recalled that cases rose during Covid times, with this year already showing a 17% increase from last year, showing the situation is worsening and that their support is now needed more than ever.
Founded in 1979, with just one shelter for women, today it is very different; it has sixteen different departments and 110 people working for them, with three shelters for women and children, three shelters for women and another one. They also have 20 apartments where women can stay for up to three years, with other services offered too, including for minors and they also run a training centre for women. She revealed that their biggest challenges include housing and poverty, as well as translation from certain languages, and she said that their second-hand shop opened earlier this year (60m2) is already too small.
She also mentioned that they are currently caring for around 35 victims of human trafficking in Luxembourg.
As the cheque was presented, Ninian Wilson said it was an eye-opener to learn of things one maybe did not know happened in Luxembourg. Talking with Chronicle.lu, he stated "At Vodafone, we believe it is important to stand behind the people and organisations making a difference when it matters most. Femmes en Détresse provides vital aid to victims of domestic abuse in Luxembourg, and we are committed to strengthening our partnership to support those in need."
It was also announced that a virtual challenge is to be organised by the Vodafone Foundation between July - September, culminating with a fundraising activity one Friday afternoon, with funds raised to go towards pop-up schools in disadvantaged area world-wide.
