IN BRIEF (Page 10)

Aid to Taiwan

The Beijing-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) has donated 106 million yuan and HK$5 million to Taiwan to help with recovery efforts in the wake of Typhoon Morakot.

ARATS reports that the organization is striving to raise more funds and attract more donations of materials for recovery efforts.

Donated radios

The State radio network China National Radio and the Yunnan provincial publicity department donated 5,000 radios to victims of the 6.0-magnitude earthquake that shook Yao'an county in Yunnan last month.

The earthquake hit southwestern China on July 9, killing one person, injuring at least 325 and damaging more than 30,000 homes.

Public donations

The organizing committee of the Guangzhou 2010 Asian Games recently announced the start of a social donations initiative designed to allow the public to take part in the upcoming event.

The minimum donation is 10 yuan. Money donated will be spent on venue construction and daily expenses of the organizing committee.

Genetic diseases

The global charity organization Project HOPE, in partnership with Genzyme Corp, has provided free medicine for more than 130 patients suffering from rare genetic diseases. The annual expenditures per patient have totaled 1.5 million yuan.

Project HOPE recently transferred the charity program to the China Charity Federation, and more than 100 additional patients with rare genetic diseases have started to received initial medical reviews and medicine.

Civil affairs initiative

The Ministry of Civil Affairs has signed an agreement with the Guangdong provincial government to jointly promote the reform and development of civil affairs projects in the Pearl River Delta Region.

Promotion of charity initiatives is among eight major goals of the partnership.

(China Daily 08/24/2009 page10)