ExxonMobil has signed a partnership with the non-governmental organization Viva Rio to distribute essential food baskets to support 52 communities in Rio de Janeiro. The company will donate US$100,000 that will benefit approximately 10,000 families.

The donation will support the campaign SOS Favela, created by Viva Rio and the Soccer Academy Pérolas Negras to help families impacted by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

“Health and safety are at the core of ExxonMobil’s values. We understand that it is very important to help those in need during these very trying times,” said Carla Lacerda, President of ExxonMobil in Brazil.

“The idea is to help minimize the negative impacts that the coronavirys have had on communities in Rio de Janeiro. Children have been left without school and nutritional snacks. Parents, mostly informal workers, have had a drastic reduction in their monthly income. The density of people per square meter, combined with poor sanitary conditions, has aggravated the risk of contamination for all residents”, explains Rubem Cesar Fernandes, executive director of Viva Rio.

The SOS Favela campaign aims to distribute 60,000 food baskets to 15,000 families until July 2020. Food and hygiene items, in addition to helping the families in need, will contribute to the local economies, since the goods will be purchased from small vendors within the communities. The food baskets items include staple foods such as rice, beans, sugar, cooking oil, and flour as well as essential household items like toilet paper, soap and toothpaste.