On the 1st of  September – the Day of Knowledge – the ceremony of opening of the Konstantin Karlovich Grot School for Blind and Visually Impaired Children after a renovation took place in St. Petersburg .

The specialized educational institution for blind and visually impaired children is under the patronage of OJSC North-West Telecom . The Company regularly renders target charity aid to the school. In 2006 OJSC N.W.Telecom funded repairs of stair flights and railings at the school, having spent 245,000 roubles for that work.

Head of the Administration of Krasnogvardeisky District of St. Petersburg M.D. Shcherbakov, members of the School Trustees' Board and representatives of OJSC North-West Telecom took part in the school opening ceremony.

G.B. Chernyak, Deputy General Manager in Charge of Property Management and General Issues of OJSC N.W.Telecom , congratulated the pupils and teachers of the school on the Day of Knowledge and said: " North-West Telecom is the biggest telecommunication s operator whose affiliates work throughout the Northwestern Federal District. Therefore, OJSC N.W.Telecom is actively helping the boarding schools that are under its patronage in all regions – from Kaliningrad to the Republic of Komi. We hope that the funds that North-West Telecom is sending to the educational institutions, including the K.K. Grot School will provide the children with comfortable conditions for their studies and will make their lives better and allow the children to feel a little calmer and safer."

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brief Information on Charity and Sponsorship Activities of OJSC North-West Telecom

Being aware of its role in the social development of the region, OJSC North-West Telecom , the biggest telecommunication s operator in the Northwestern Federal District, actively cooperates with governmental and non- governmental institutions and organizations and bears social responsibility both to its employees and to the population of the Northwestern Federal District where OJSC N.W.Telecom provides its services . Coordination of charity activities and control over targeted expenditure of the funds provided for in the budget of the Company are the responsibility of a special Commission of OJSC N.W.Telecom for Donations, Sponsorship and Charity Activities. All applications to the Company are thoroughly considered by the management – members of the Commission. A competent decision is taken on each issue.

            In connection with an intensive flow of applications, a decision has been made by OJSC North-West Telecom to select several organizations that will be under its patronage and to render charty assistance to them on a target basis. OJSC N.W.Telecom provides regular aid to 21 organizations, including the Specialized House of Child for children with impairment of the central nervous system and mental deviations in Arkhangelsk, the Nadezhda Municipal Social Asylum for Children in Kaliningrad Oblast , the A.A. Katolikov Agricultural Boarding School in the Republic of Komi and many others.