Centraide of Greater Montreal receives $1 million donation from BMO to better understand social issues

MONTREAL, Dec. 16, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ - Centraide of Greater Montreal is pleased to announce that it is receiving a $1 million donation from BMO, a gift that will support the development of the second phase of an innovative tech project to better understand and anticipate social issues.

The goal is to equip Centraide and all social, philanthropic and institutional stakeholders with a decision support tool and shared data to better fight poverty and social exclusion. The project will provide an overview of social investments made in Greater Montreal to optimize them and avoid potential service gaps.

Compiling information and data sets will allow stakeholders to better understand the situation, identify priority or emerging social issues (such as housing, mental health, young people's academic success), and better direct investments to support vulnerable people.

"The pandemic has shown how important it is to join forces to help those in need. At the start of the crisis, we launched a pilot project to align and coordinate food security efforts. BMO's donation will allow us to continue to develop this collaborative digital project and expand its scope to anticipate social issues. Fragmented information held by multiple stakeholders will be pooled so that actions can be better coordinated based on needs," said Claude Pinard, President and Executive Director of Centraide of Greater Montreal.

"BMO is proud to partner with charitable organizations to deliver transformational change in support of communities we serve. The innovative solutions delivered by Centraide, that directly address the challenges of fighting poverty and social exclusion across Greater Montreal, are invaluable supports helping to eliminate barriers for inclusion throughout our community. Partnering with Centraide is a highly effective way to make an impact - and I encourage all interested in helping to make a difference to reach out to Centraide today," said Darryl White, CEO of BMO Financial Group.

About Centraide of Greater Montreal

Centraide of Greater Montreal is active in the territories of Laval, Montreal and the South Shore. It regularly supports a network of 350 agencies and collective projects every year. Centraide is supported by corporations, private, public and parapublic institutions as well as large trade unions. The money it raises is invested locally to break the cycle of poverty and social exclusion. For more information: centraide-mtl.org.

About the Centraides of Quebec

In Quebec, 11 independent Centraides raise and invest money in their territories to act effectively on poverty and social exclusion. They support approximately 1,500 community agencies and projects that help and bring comfort to over one million vulnerable people in the province. Quebec's Centraides are also members of United Way Centraide Canada, which includes 77 Centraides and United Ways across the country.

About BMO Financial Group

Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a highly diversified financial services provider - the 8th largest bank, by assets, in North America. With total assets of $988 billion as of October 31, 2021, and a team of diverse and highly engaged employees, BMO provides a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management and investment banking products and services to more than 12 million customers and conducts business through three operating groups: Personal and Commercial Banking, BMO Wealth Management and BMO Capital Markets.

SOURCE Centraide of Greater Montreal

Media interviews, Annick Gagnon, Centraide of Greater Montreal, [email protected], 514 288-1261, extension 242; Marie-Catherine Noël, BMO Financial Group, [email protected], 514-877-8224