Storm relief

Domestic and foreign donations for China's blizzard relief exceeded 2.28 billion yuan by the end of February, while corporations, especially local large enterprises, took active roles.

A report released at the end of March reveals that Chinese businesses donated 1.17 billion yuan in cash and goods - nearly half of the donations as a whole - while transnational companies contributed 50.68 million yuan.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs and Zhongmin Charity Information Center - a non-profit philanthropic information collection and research institute - made the report.

Corporate contributions

Staff from Red Cross Society of China distribute cotton-padded quilts to destitute people from Lujiang County in Anhui province.

Domestic donations reached 1.54 billion yuan and accounted for 67.74 percent of the total.

Those donations, in addition to 1.17 billion yuan from domestic companies, include 158 million yuan from the armed forces, 100 million yuan from institutions, 62 million yuan from employees of central and local governments and 51 million yuan from individuals.

According to the report, large State-owned enterprises were the major forces, which donated 431 million yuan in cash and relief supplies, making up 19 percent of the charity fund as a whole or 28 percent of the domestic donations.

Businesses from eight industries, including electric power, oil, securities, property, bank, insurance, telecommunication and cigarettes, were the most active. Their contributions amounted to 629 million yuan, accounting for 28 percent of the total donations or 41 percent of the local philanthropic fund.

A series of domestic leading names, such as State Grid Corporation of China, China National Petroleum Corporation, China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation, China Mobile, Bank of China, China Life Insurance (Group) Company and Sino Steel Corporation, donated over 10 million yuan each for the disaster relief.

Some Chinese private enterprises also showed their benevolence. Inner Mongolia-based Dongda Mengguwang Group, a cashmere products manufacturer, donated 2.18 million yuan worth of warm clothes and 1 million yuan in cash.

Multinational companies demonstrated their philanthropy via financial support, donations of relief materials and volunteers.

The world's top retailer Wal-Mart donated 7.2 million yuan in cash, and goods valued at 1 million yuan. Besides donating food and clothes, Amway (China) Co Ltd organized 148 volunteer teams of staff members and consumers to offer support for snow-stricken regions. Those volunteers contributed 500,000 hours in disaster relief work.

Overseas donations

The report says that overseas donations were 734 million yuan, making up 32.26 percent of the total.

With an aggregate donation of 378 million yuan, the government of and various circles in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region were the biggest contributors from outside the Chinese mainland, the report shows.

Other donations, besides overseas corporate contributions, include 168 million yuan from the government and various circles in Macao Special Administrative Region, 99.22 million yuan from individual overseas Chinese, 21.73 million yuan from foreign governments and 16.08 million yuan from Taiwan compatriots.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs says the report is intended make the process more transparent and to help the public track the use of donations.

The National Audit Office announced on March 26 that it would launch an investigation into the use of snow-disaster relief funds and donations.

The office will audit the local departments and organizations in charge of the relief in 19 provincial regions, including Hunan, Hubei and Zhejiang.

The auditor says the investigation, from April 1 to the middle of May, aims to improve the management of the fund and donations.

Beginning in Mid-January, heavy snow and sleet hit the central, south and southwest regions of China. The snow storm was the worst in 50 years and claimed 129 lives, damaged or destroyed 485,000 houses and ruined about 1.67 million hectares of crops.

There were widespread reports of livestock deaths, schools and power facilities were damaged, and transportation was severely disrupted.

Losses have been estimated at about 151.6 billion yuan.

(China Daily 04/07/2008 page8)