Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/899902
49 Events maltatoday SUNDAY 12 NOVEMBER 2017 77 Great Estates Charity poker tournament in aid of MCCFF 77 Great Estates and L-Istrina have joined forces to organise a first-of-its kind one-day poker shootout tourna- ment in aid of the The Malta Com- munity Chest Fund Foundation (MC- CFF). The tournament will be hosted at the The Dragonara Casino Poker Room and will be held on 24 Novem- ber 2017. It will start at 3pm and will be played on a three round format. The first round will start at 3pm, the second round at 6pm and the final round at 9pm. Poker players participating in the tournament will each donate €200 as the tournament buy-in, of which 90% will be donated to the Malta Commu- nity Chest Fund Foundation while the remainder will be distributed as prize money to the top ten players. The winner of the tournament will receive all-inclusive tickets for the Pokerstars Championships to be held in Prague between 7 and 18 December of this year. Ten runners up shall re- ceive 10% of the total buy-in money re- ceived. Spaces are limited to 180 play- ers and bookings can be confirmed by contacting Michelle Schembri or Dominique van Burik at 77 Great Es- tates, 213 Tower Road, Sliema either by phone on 2721 7777 or 9951 7777 or by email to RL@77GreatEstates. com . Organisations wishing to book a full table of 10 players for their employees, clients etc. (donation of €2000), will be given the opportunity to present their donation of €2000 in the form of a "presentation cheque" at the much sought after charity event ''L-Istrina'' on 26 December and have the name of the organisation included on a plaque fixed to a newly planted tree as part of The Malta Community Chest Fund Foundation's latest initiative in its commitment to the environment. The tournament is organised by 77 Great Estates in collaboration with The Malta Community Chest Fund Foundation and is sponsored by A Modo Mio, The Dragnonara Casino and The Ministry of Finance. Additional information about the event can be found at www.77greatestates.com/events/ MAPFRE'S revenue exceeds €21.3bln in the first nine months of the year MAPFRE's revenue in the first nine months of the year rose to €21.3 billion euros, a 1.6% increase on the same period of the previous year. Premiums grew by 5.1% to €18 billion, driven by business growth in Spain, Mexico and the reinsur- ance and global risks businesses. In Malta, the MAPFRE Group is represented by MAPFRE Mid- dlesea and MAPFRE MSV Life. Net profit stood at €445 mil- lion, a decrease of 22.3%, due to the costs stemming from recent natural disasters in both North America and the Caribbean, the estimated impact of which is €176 million net. During the first nine months of this year, the Insurance Unit's pre- mium volume rose to €14.8 billion, a 6.3% increase relative to the same period last year. Equity closed in September 2017 at €10.8 billion euros, while share- holders' equity rose to €8.8 bil- lion and total assets at the close of September amounted to €67.7 bil- lion. MAPFRE's investments totalled €49.4 billion at the end of September. Of this amount, 54% corresponded to sovereign debt, while 20% was invested in corporate fixed in- come, with 9 percent in equity and mutual funds. The Solvency II ratio at the close of the first half of this year was 205.6% with 87% of top-notch (TIER 1) capital, reflecting the ro- bustness and stability of the Group, which is supported by broad diver- sification and strict investment and management policies. Premiums in the EMEA Regional Area stood at €1.4 billion, down 4.1%. In Malta, the insurance business grew by 12.8% to €278 million. MAPFRE VIDA also grew by 4.7% recording premium volume of €1.6 billion euros, with the bank channel contribution, especially that of BANKIA MAPFRE VIDA (+65.4 %), being worthy of men- tion. Meanwhile the Global Risks Business Unit registered pre- mium growth of 6.9% in the first nine months of the year, producing €950 million. The LATAM North and EMEA Regional Areas performed espe- cially well, posting double-digit growth. The Red Bull Curates: Canvas Cooler Project is back with a Valletta Special Edition The Red Bull Curates: Canvas Cooler Project is back for its sec- ond edition in 2018. The project will invite up-and-coming artists with different art styles to change blank Red Bull coolers into works of art. Valletta will play host to the 2018 edition of the Red Bull Cu- rates: Canvas Cooler Project, with the trendiest bars around the capital assigned to individual artists, providing inspiration for each cooler design. 10 artists will have the opportunity to create an individual masterpiece and trans- form these Red Bull coolers. The finished products will then be housed in some of Valletta's most unique bars and venues. Interested artists can submit their applications until the end of January. The application form can be found on the Facebook event page: Red Bull Curates: Canvas Cooler Project // Valletta. The event is being supported by VeeGeeBee Art and Add More Colors. Judges will select the ten art- ists that will embark on the two months project, finishing off with a live installation in the streets Valletta. The finished coolers will be showcased at St James Cavalier in March 2018. Glenn Ellul - Winner Red Bull Curates Malta 2016 Paulo Freire Institute and Vodafone Malta Foundation launch free, digital toolkit for people facing literacy challenges The Paulo Freire Institute and the Vodafone Malta Founda- tion have launched iċ-Ċavetta, a newly created, digital Maltese lit- eracy toolkit targeted at adults and youths facing social exclusion and employment challenges. The free resource can be ac- cessed through the website cavet- ta.org.mt, as well as through an app which may be downloaded through Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The toolkit, which has been two years in the making, is structured like a course and contains a set of 32 interactive activities – start- ing off at an elementary level and becoming progressively more ad- vanced – to allow the user to ac- quire basic reading and writing skills in Maltese. Iċ-Ċavetta is currently the only existing resource aimed at teach- ing basic literacy skills in Maltese which is specifically targeted at youths and adults. It is based on a set of text books produced since 2008 by the Paulo Freire Institute, which in turn was the fruit of the NGO's several years of work in the field of education and helping adults with literacy. The online toolkit also helps ren- der reading and writing more at- tractive to the youth demographic already familiar with technologi- cal devices, whilst encouraging computer orientation skills in the older demographic. According to the last census in 2011, there are about 24,000 peo- ple in Malta who are unable to read and write. "These people tend to slip through the net and may never fully participate in Maltese and European society. Their employ- ment prospects grow dim. Illit- eracy also renders people more vulnerable and prone to being exploited by others," Fr Edgar Bu- suttil, director of the Paulo Freire Institute, said. "We are confident that this app will be of great assistance to those adults and youths who, for some reason or other, find it difficult to read and will help them partici- pate more fully in Maltese soci- ety." Vodafone Malta Foundation chairman Michel Macelli said that iċ-Ċavetta was one of several projects which the Foundation undertook under its 'Connecting for Good' programme aimed at harnessing the power of mobile technology to bring about social change. "We trust that iċ-Ċavetta will be the key to employment opportuni- ties, greater confidence and well- being, and a higher standard of living," he said.