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BASF and Nippon Paint improve learning environment in needy areas of Vietnam for second year
- Painting sponsorship for five needy schools in Trà Vinh, Hậu Giang and Đồng Nai provinces as part of three year partnership
- Nearly 850 school children benefit from 2015 to 2016
Tra Vinh, Vietnam – October 24, 2016 – BASF, one of the world’s largest chemical companies, and Nippon Paint, a leading paint manufacturer, today launched their second year of partnership in supporting needy schools in remote areas of Vietnam. The sponsorship will benefit nearly 600 students at kindergarten and primary levels in Trà Vinh, Hậu Giang and Đồng Nai provinces. A total of over 3,700sqm will be painted with low odor products to improve the learning environment of the schools. This is part of a three-year joint initiative entitled “Painting for a good cause”, in which the two companies fund the school painting projects in needy areas of Vietnam. The project has benefited approximately 850 children since 2015.
Four out of the five schools are from remote areas about 50-60 km away from the centers of Trà Vinh and Hậu Giang provinces. In these districts approximately 15-20% of the population earns from VND300,000-400,000 (USD 13-17) per person per month. Poverty and other challenges of development prevent many children in these areas from studying. Meanwhile, the school in Biên Hòa, Đồng Nai houses more than 3,000 students and holds three shifts per day. All of the schools require maintenance and safety improvements. By offering sponsorship, BASF and Nippon Paint aim to provide safe, suitable and hygienic learning environments for the students.
The initiative is facilitated by Saigon Children’s Charity CIO. Its “School Building and Learning Environments” program has built more than 350 classrooms, and benefited thousands of students from kindergarten up to secondary levels, since it was established in 1992.
“A well-educated young generation is important to BASF, so education is one of the core elements of our corporate citizenship efforts. We work with our partners to provide education to the needy children in Vietnam and to develop the leaders of the next generation. The partnership with Nippon Paint underlines our commitment to help improve quality of life for the neighboring community,” said Tanachart Ralsiripong, Managing Director, BASF Vietnam.
“Our corporate social responsibility activities offer Nippon Paint a platform to do something meaningful for the community and the environment. We believe the best way to contribute to our society is with our painting solutions and expertise, backed by the skills and passion of our employees. This distinction validates our efforts toward making a substantial and lasting impact in communities. We also wanted a project that would build pride and inspire participation among our employees, allowing us to give back to our local community,” said Mr Ee Soon Hean, General Director of Nippon Paint Vietnam.
Nippon Paint Vietnam has been active in multiple community projects. Since 2014, the company has painted more than 100 needy houses in Ho Chi Minh City in partnership with Galaxy Cinema and YanTV. It has recently launched a TV reality show entitled “Tổ ấm hạnh phúc” (Happy House) on the popular HTV7 channel, attracting a number of celebrities including Xuân Lan, Đàm Vĩnh Hưng, Kim Xuân. Over 1,600 liters of paint valued at VND 300 milion have been donated to the program.
BASF Vietnam has partnered with Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education & Training since 2011 to bring Kids’ Lab, an interactive education program, to almost 2,500 primary students. The company also worked with Saigon Children’s Charity CIO to sponsor a school renovation project in Tập Ngãi district, Trà Vinh province to help 75 kids go to school and offer full scholarship to eight university students from needy families for their four years of studies.
About BASF
At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. The approximately 112,000 employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into five segments: Chemicals, Performance Products, Functional Materials & Solutions, Agricultural Solutions and Oil & Gas. BASF generated sales of more than €70 billion in 2015. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (AN). Further information at www.basf.com.
About Nippon Paint
Founded in Japan in 1881, Nippon Paint is now among leading paint manufacturers in the world. Spreading to over fifteen countries and two continents, along with ceaseless improvement in technology as well as material, Nippon Paint is now regarded as the optimal choice in the field of industry, automobile, motorcycle, architecture, marine and decorating houses. The Nippon Paint facilities have produced high quality paints and coatings with its advanced Japanese know-how. Based on its corporate philosophy, skilled manpower and non-stop improvements in technology, Nippon Paint has changed buildings and houses’ face in Asia in general. The corporate site can be found at nipponpaint.com and our Vietnam business is available at nipponpaint.com.vn. Read more about our CSR Asia-wide on http://en.ecocolor.com.cn
About Saigon Children’s Charity CIO
Saigon Children's Charity CIO (SCC) was founded in 1992 to help disadvantaged children in Vietnam to escape from the cycle of poverty by giving them an education and a fair start in life.
SCC takes simple, practical steps to ensure that the children most in need get an education. We build schools and provide scholarships, as well as targeted extra help and vocational training. We work in and around Ho Chi Minh City, including District 4, District 8, Tan Phu District and in the rural fringes such as Can Gio, Cu Chi and District 9. In addition, we work in rural provinces close to HCMC such as Dong Nai and Tay Ninh, several provinces of the Mekong Delta (Tien Giang, Tra Vinh, Kien Giang, Hau Giang) and have also built classrooms in Quang Tri, Phu Tho and Ninh Binh Provinces.
With more than 25 years of experience, SCC has now built and renovated more than 350 classrooms, and has supported more than 40,000 children and young people with scholarships and vocational training.
A board of independent trustees is accountable for the work of the organisation and SCC publishes audited accounts annually with grateful thanks to KPMG. We aim always to be a high quality organisation, which is both transparent and fully accountable.
To find out more about SCC, please visit www.saigonchildren.com, call us on (84 8) 3930 3502 or email us at scc@saigonchildren.com.
