On the 26th of August, SK Telecom announced that the company and KFHI, a Korean non-profit organization that feeds the hungry, established a Peace School for children, and hosted a peace festival in Almohad elementary school in Baghdad, Iraq.

According to SK Telecom, the main purpose of starting this program is to rebuild an Iraqi school that was bombed during the recent war with the US, and to implement and promote the notion of peace. To fund the program, SK Telecom used its customers’ accumulated points earned through connection fees during a two-month period from June 10th to August 10th. The company also contributed by matching the amount of customers’ points.

In the opening ceremony of the Peace School, 6 regional representatives of Rashid City, a municipal assemblyman, a scholarship committee member, SK Telecom Philanthropy Team members, and KFHI officials participated.

To kick-off the program, SK Telecom and KFHI held various events revolving around the theme of peace: an essay writing contest, a speech contest, sing-along sessions, drawing, and sports.


"As victims of war, the Iraqi children have experienced firsthand, chaos and fear," said H.W. Kwon, KFHI’s director in charge of the Iraqi location. "Our goal is not only to rebuild school facilities that have been destroyed, and provide school supplies and meals, but also to share peace, and plant the idea of peace, in the children. Looking into their sparkling eyes, we can find hope that Iraq will be reconstructed" he added.

Using the Peace School as a link, KFHI and SK Telecom are in the process of developing various long-term business opportunities for the reconstruction of Iraq. They include new construction or repair of schools, distribution of school supplies, and a school meals operation. Furthermore, the two organizations are mapping out plans to develop a comprehensive business that will help poor communities become self-sufficient.

The KFHI has dispatched emergency medical teams 9 times since April of this year, and supplied medicine and food in Baghdad. In addition, the organization, together with KOICA, selected 11,100 households in 6 regions of Iraq (Al lisala, Saidie, Beya, Shorita, Amel, and Zihad), and supplied food to them. They also donated school supplies to 750 households with the support of the Rasid Municipal Council of Baghdad. The KFHI not only supplied medicine and food, and carried out school reconstruction activities, but it was also involved in establishing a theological school in Iraq with the support of the Baghdad Gospel Church.