Press Releases

Budapest, May 25, 2009 18:30

Some ten thousand children are reported missing in Hungary annually. May 25 is the world day of missing children. Magyar Telekom, and the Blue Line Children in Crisis Foundation it sponsors announced a year ago - among the first in Europe - to launch the harmonized European helpline call number 116 000. Runaway and abducted children and relatives looking for them can call the Blue Line "Are You OK? Missing Children" service on the 116 000 telephone number from any network in the country 24 hours a day.

Magyar Telekom has been continuously supporting the Blue Line Children in Crisis Foundation and their work in the interest of missing children since 2000; in the past two years it donated to them a total of 13 million HUF.

The 116 000 emergency number was appointed by the European Union for the national children's helpline services of the member states. The other harmonized call number of the Blue Line service is 116 111, which works as general crisis intervention and counseling telephone number for children and youths.

Beyond providing support Magyar Telekom has done a lot for the introduction of harmonized European call numbers: it has reserved the call numbers and coordinated them with the partner operators in order to make these numbers available from any network in the country.

Magyar Telekom attaches great importance to supporting the Hungarian telephone helpline services and it enables the calling of these numbers free of charge. In 2009 we provided almost 24 million HUF support to the organizations that operate the helplines.

Magyar Telekom, as leading infocommunications provider, is dedicated to embracing initiatives which help people in need. Corporate social responsibility, which we implement in various forms in the framework of the Magyar Telekom Gives Back program, is an integral part of our corporate strategy. This program comprises direct cash donations, services provided in order to collect donations from the citizens (e.g. the well-known 1788 Telekom Donation Line) and charitable services (e.g. Civil Tariff Package for non-profit organizations, support of telephone helpline services and the individual donations of Magyar Telekom employees). Health, education and sustainability are the focal areas of our sponsoring strategy. We give priority to sponsoring programs that promote children's health and welfare, the integration of communities suffering from a communication gap and to the elimination of the digital divide in order to ensure sustainable development.