About the Voilà Foundation

For over a decade, Voilà, one of Haiti’s leading wireless communications providers, has been committed to improving the lives of the Haitian people through youth and education initiatives supported by the Voilà Foundation. In December 2009, Voilà and parent company, Trilogy International Partners, based in Bellevue, WA, received the prestigious “Award for Corporate Excellence” (ACE) from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in recognition of Voilà’s record of corporate social responsibility in Haiti.

Following the tragic earthquake on Jan. 12, Voilà and Trilogy established the Voilà Foundation as an independent 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charity in the U.S. The foundation works across a wide range of organizations and initiatives, to develop long-term sustainable solutions to build a better Haiti. We provide grants, donations, strategic and technical expertise to many organizations throughout Haiti. We also partner with local NGOs, the international non-profi t community, government agencies and leaders within our industry to develop initiatives that provide lasting social benefits.

The Voilà Foundation is committed to utilizing its resources to work on projects that will rebuild human and economic resources in ways that are scalable, durable, and far-reaching. We will focus our efforts on three areas that combine our knowledge of technology with Haiti’s long-term needs: using information communications capabilities to stimulate economic growth; creating jobs through skills training and sponsoring entrepreneurs, and supporting education

As technology suppliers we are part of the future. We complement many of the different programs that we support with communications technologies and services—powerful tools to move productivity, education, and entrepreneurship ahead.

As employers of the local workforce we are part of the Haitian community and culture. Our employees support many of our efforts in the community and they are personally invested in their country’s recovery.

Executive Director, Tanya Baskin

Tanya Baskin leads the Voilà Foundation’s mission to support relief and development efforts in Haiti that not only help address Haiti’s pressing needs for education, youth development, health care, and jobs - but that can also be scaled for deployment across the country.

Tanya was previously the Vice President of Corporate Development for Special Olympics, Inc., and has a successful record in working with a variety of multinational corporate donors and in organizing philanthropic programs and events throughout the world. Tanya is based in Washington, DC to help coordinate with U.S. government agencies and NGOs that are engaged in the Haitian reconstruction effort. She travels regularly to Haiti, to oversee the progress of existing projects and to spur the development of other strategic proposals that the Foundation is evaluating.

To ensure all donations made to the Voilà Foundation go directly to Haitian reconstruction programs, Tanya is an employee of Trilogy International Partners, which owns and operates Voilà (Comcel).

General Facts About Haiti

The native Taino Amerindians - who inhabited the island of Hispaniola when it was discovered by COLUMBUS in 1492 - were virtually annihilated by Spanish settlers within 25 years. In the early 17th century, the French established a presence on Hispaniola. In 1697, Spain ceded to the French the western third of the island, which later became Haiti. The French colony, based on forestry and sugar-related industries, became one of the wealthiest in the Caribbean. After a prolonged struggle, Haiti became the first black republic to declare independence in 1804.