- Spain's national air navigation service provider is joining the 'Unidiversidad' programme to support access to university, employability and independence for people with intellectual disabilities and/or autism
- José Antonio Santano: “This agreement reaffirms ENAIRE's commitment to training, workplace inclusion, diversity and supporting initiatives that make us a better society”
- Alberto Durán (ONCE): “Partnerships like this help us move forward, build a more inclusive society and improve the lives of people involved in our various projects”
ENAIRE and the ONCE Foundation have agreed to work together on training and employment for people with disabilities through the Unidiversidad programme, which helps people with intellectual disabilities and/or autism access university.
ENAIRE president José Antonio Santano and ONCE Foundation executive vice-president Alberto Durán signed the agreement on Thursday at the ONCE Foundation's Madrid headquarters. Also attending were ENAIRE director general Enrique Maurer and ONCE Foundation director general José Luis Martínez Donoso.
The ONCE Foundation has been running this programme since 2017/2018, with support from the European Social Fund. It gives young people with intellectual disabilities and/or autism access to university through a university certificate course in social and employment skills, equipping them to enter the workforce and supporting their independence and personal development.
The programme runs at universities across the country through an annual call for applications, open to all universities and to young people with intellectual disabilities aged 18 to 30 who are registered with Spain's Youth Guarantee scheme.
ENAIRE will provide the ONCE Foundation with a financial contribution to sponsor and co-fund the programme, ranging from a minimum of €100,000 to a maximum of €150,000 annually for the duration of the agreement.
Corporate Social Responsibility
With this partnership, Spain's national air navigation service provider reaffirms its commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility and to the principles of the United Nations Global Compact, which it signed in 2018. The Compact entails applying universal ethical principles to corporate strategy.
To comply with the so-called 'reserve quota', which requires Spanish companies with 50 or more employees to have at least 2% of people with disabilities in their workforce, ENAIRE has opted for one of the alternatives set out in Royal Decree 364/2025.
ENAIRE also contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda as a core pillar of its Corporate Social Responsibility strategy.
Workplace inclusion
According to José Antonio Santano, State Secretary at the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility and President of ENAIRE, “this agreement is an opportunity to advance training, inclusion and independence for people with intellectual disabilities or autism, reinforcing ENAIRE's commitment to workplace inclusion, diversity and supporting initiatives that make us a better society”.
Alberto Durán, Executive Vice-President of the ONCE Foundation, said: “partnerships like the one formalised in this agreement help us move forward, build a more inclusive society and improve the lives of people involved in our various projects”.
Since 2019, ENAIRE has issued three rounds of grant funding for projects supporting employment and job creation for people with disabilities. These three grant calls, worth €2.1 million in total, have funded 34 projects run by public-interest foundations and associations, benefiting more than 2,600 people and resulting in over 1,350 job placements to date.
The signing of this agreement was made possible because ENAIRE and the ONCE Foundation share the same values regarding the support of people with disabilities. Through this agreement, it will be easier to achieve a positive impact in this area for society as a whole.
About ENAIRE
ENAIRE is the air navigation service provider in Spain.
As a company of the Ministry of Sustainable Transport and Mobility, it provides air traffic control services during the en route and approach phases of all flights to and from Spain and overflights. In addition, it manages communications, navigation and surveillance services from ENAIRE in the airspace and the entire AENA airport network in Spain and provides aerodrome air traffic control services in 21 airports, including the busiest.
ENAIRE is the fourth largest European air navigation service provider, and it is a member of international partnerships A6 Alliance, SESAR (Single European Sky ATM Research) Joint Undertaking, SESAR Deployment Manager, iTEC, CANSO (Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation) and collaborates closely with ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization).
ENAIRE has obtained the highest rating in the key performance indicator for air safety at European scale for six consecutive years, the last five with the maximum possible score of 100%. It has also been awarded the EFQM 600 Seal for its safe, efficient, innovative and sustainable management of air navigation services.