For their contribution to achieving a better world through solidarity and Social Responsibility actions with various social, health and humanitarian institutions, the UCAM International Chair in SR proposed to recognise Enrique Ayuso, president of the HEFAME Group, to María Dolores García, president of the UCAM. This morning, the Temple of the Monastery of Los Jerónimos hosted the award ceremony, which was also attended by Juan José Pedreño, Regional Minister of Health; members of the Governing Council of HEFAME, of the Governing Council of UCAM, theFaculty of Pharmacy and Nutrition and the Chair, as well as companies linked to the latter and the pharmaceutical company. 

The event was attended by María Dolores García, UCAM President; Fernando López Miras, President of the Autonomous Community of the Region; Víctor Meseguer, Director of the Chair, and the award winner Enrique Ayuso, who expressed his gratitude for this recognition, ‘on an important day, due to the current state of HEFAME, its growth and expansion, and I believe that this is a success story for the social economy, for co-operatives, which we must highlight’, emphasising how HEFAME places social and healthcare interests above economic ones.

María Dolores highlighted all the social actions undertaken by Enrique Ayuso as the nexus of the ‘constant search for ways to improve the lives of people, especially those who are vulnerable due to illness, looking towards all parts of the Region of Murcia and, at the same time, far beyond it’. She emphasised the ‘outstanding social, economic and training initiatives, as well as the great expansion of the cooperative’.

The President of the Autonomous Community of the Region has affirmed that this is a ‘fair recognition" for the work HEFAME carries out on a daily basis. ‘If we think in terms of a person linked to a company, both in terms of being involved in it and in terms of receiving help, HEFAME is the one that comes to mind’, he added, and mentioned Enrique Ayuso for being a leader in terms sustainability in companies, ‘but I would also like to highlight your role in terms of business leadership’. In addition, Fernando López Miras stressed the importance of UCAM presenting Mr Ayuso with this award ‘for being an entity of circular social responsibility’, by allocating resources to socially improve the environment and help those in need. 

From aid in Senegal to the training of professionals

Among the milestones that Enrique Ayuso has achieved as head of the HEFAME Group are the development of more than a hundred social aid and socio-health campaigns, ‘such as the humanitarian projects carried out in India, with the construction of two villages; in Senegal, with the start-up of a pharmacy and a compounding formulation laboratory; or also in Madagascar and in parts of Africa’, said Víctor Meseguer, director of the UCAM International Chair in SR. He also listed other projects that have been set up, such as accompanying children who are alone during their hospitalisation, and which also includes research; or the creation of ‘Somos solidarios’ (we support each other), for rapid aid in the event of natural disasters - La Palma, Turkey, Syria and Morocco -or armed conflicts (Ukraine). In addition, he has promoted the teaching field with the organisation of various training sessions, supporting projects of the UCAM Chair, for all of which Enrique Ayuso ‘combines freedom, nobility and effort’, making HEFAME a model of pharmacy that is ‘supportive and sustainable, accessible and comprehensive’.

International relevance of the Chair

This recognition is endorsed by the international prestige of the UCAM Chair in Social Responsibility, as a result of the research and reports it carries out for national and foreign institutions, and for the training it provides, both in Spain as well as in other countries. Its University Master's Degree in Corporate Social Responsibility which is about to commence with its 9th edition should be highlighted. In this Master's Degree, students from Spain, Colombia, Italy, Argentina, Chile, Congo, Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador will take part. All of them come from different professional fields.