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SKorea Pres. to donate $26.1m to society

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-07-06 11:46

SEOUL: South Korean President Lee Myung-bak will donate 33.1 billion won ($26.1 million) to society to be used for youth scholarships, South Korea's presidential office said Monday.

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak arrives at Tokyo's Haneda airport June 28, 2009. [Agencies]

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The Foundation Establishment Committee, launched in March in connection with President Lee's donation of his personal assets to society, announced that it decided on how to administer its fund worth 33.1 billion won ($26.1 million) after four months of deliberation, the presidential office said in a press release.

The committee said it reached an agreement to use the fund, to be named "Chyunggye," for scholarships for young people "to better reflect the will of the President."

"President's donation embodies his firm belief that no one should be prevented from learning because of money and that poverty should not be handed down generation after generation," Seo Jeong-ho, head of the committee, said.

The property assets to be donated by President Lee include three buildings located in Seocho-dong and Yangjae-dong, two districts in southern Seoul, of which the rent will be used for the financial resource of the scholarship.

As of now, the total rent is expected to reach around 90 million won ($71,100) per month, or around 1.1 billion won ($869,000) a year, excluding operating expenses, the committee said.

More details of the scholarship program, such as the beneficiaries and the scope of the scholarships, are yet to be concluded as the board of the directors is still in deliberations, the committee added.

The whole process of the establishment of the foundation is expected to be completed by early next month, the committee told the presidential office.

Earlier during his presidential campaign, then-candidate Lee pledged to donate his personal assets to the society once elected.

So as to remarks that President Lee should have fulfilled his promise sooner, Presidential Spokesperson Lee Dong-kwan said, " the President has a firm conviction that it was particularly important to take enough time to make a substantial plan rather than rushing the establishment of the foundation."