BANGKOK – Tana Netting has presented a donation of 400 mosquito nets worth US$2,500 (THB 85,000) to the Human Development Foundation Mercy Centre, a local NGO that supports street children, slum dwellers and HIV/AIDS patients living in Thailand.  The donation was made in honor of HM Queen Sirikit’s birthday and seeks to improve the quality of life of the organization’s beneficiaries by offering a good night’s rest, free from mosquito bites.
 
Jurgen Swinckels, Tana Netting’s Managing Director, presented the nets to HDF Co-founder Sister Maria Chantavarodom, who will distribute the nets to the organization’s projects in Bangkok, Ranong and Nong Khai provinces
 
“Her Majesty the Queen’s birthday is also Mother’s Day in Thailand and Tana Netting is pleased to support the Mercy Centre on this auspicious occasion,” said Mr. Swinckels. “Mosquitoes are not only a nuisance, but also carry diseases such as dengue fever and malaria, presenting a very real health risk to people living in Bangkok’s slums and at the Mercy Centre’s projects in the provinces.  We hope that our donation will alleviate this health risk while helping the Mercy Centre’s beneficiaries get the rest they deserve.”
 
HDF Mercy Centre’s facilities in Thailand include a shelter for street kids, four orphanages, a hospice, an abode for HIV/AIDS-infected mothers and children and 27 kindergartens.  Father Joe Maier, the Mercy Centre’s founder has worked tirelessly to improve living conditions in Thailand for over four decades and has received many accolades for his work.
 
“The Mercy Centre relies on the generous support of corporations, foundations, institutions, governments and individuals. Financial and in-kind donations make it possible for us to provide the much-needed services to the poorest of the poor throughout the country,” said John Padorr, HDF Mercy Centre’s communications advisor.  “Tana Netting’s mosquito nets will help offer protection from mosquitoes to 400 households, especially at our project on Koh Lao island in Ranong province, as well as the elderly and HIV/AIDS patients benefiting from our care.  We thank Tana Netting for this generous donation.”

Tana Netting actively supports projects that have a positive impact on people’s lives in Thailand, Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.  Over the past year, beneficiaries have included the Silk Homes project for expectant mothers in Laos, victims of Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar and a Ministry of Foreign Affairs project run by the Royal Thai Embassy in Dakar, Senegal.

Tana Netting recently became the first and only Thai company to receive a recommendation from the World Health Organization for its DawaPlus® long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LNs).  LNs play a key role in eradicating malaria in Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Latin America.  All of Tana Netting's products are manufactured in a socially responsible production process, respecting the health and well-being of its 150 workers and minimizing impact on the environment.

“Tana Netting’s mission is to improve the quality of lives of people.  For us this means developing and producing innovative personal protection products in a sustainable and socially responsible manner,” Mr. Swinckels added. “An extension of this commitment is developing partnerships with public and private sector organizations to help them achieve them achieve their goals of improving lives.  We look forward to future fruitful collaborations with other organizations in Thailand and abroad.”