Corporates donate big to flood relief efforts in Shanxi Province, China. Companies including tech giants Tencent, Alibaba and Pinduoduo, and smartphone makers Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo, have pledged US$46 million to aid over 1.75 million people affected by severe rainstorms and floods. The giving comes amid a nationwide call of common prosperity, the concept championed by President Xi Jinping that companies should focus on stakeholder value and contribute to overall societal wellbeing. Continue reading in the South China Morning Post →

Sustainable infrastructure platform launched in Singapore. Temasek has partnered with HSBC Bank to set up a US$150 million platform dedicated to sustainable infrastructure projects. Initially focusing on Southeast Asia, the aim is to scale the platform to US$1 billion in loans within 5 years. The platform will target projects in renewable energy and storage, water and waste treatment, and sustainable transport to offset the impact of climate change. Continue reading on HSBC’s website →

India’s social sector gets a boost. The country is set to establish its first social stock exchange, paving the way for nonprofit organizations and for-profit social enterprises to access capital markets. Organizations will be able to raise funds through equity, impact bonds, and other market instruments. Also, India just celebrated DaanUtsav, a week-long festival of giving and the fifth year of GivingTuesday India, led by nonprofit and CAPS partner GuideStar India. This year’s events focused on impacting millions of lives through donations and volunteering.

India’s richest are investing big in clean energy. Mukesh Ambani tops the Forbes and Hurun India’s respective rich lists, followed by Gautam Adani in second spot. Both are making significant investments in clean energy, with Reliance spending US$10.1 billion over 3 years, and the Adani Group investing US$50-70 billion over the next 10 years. These investments show Asian energy companies recognize the need to focus on renewable and clean energy sources.

Corporates and foundations seek to address social issues in Hong Kong. New World Development launches a nonprofit social housing enterprise, New World Build for Good, to research and pilot programs in pursuit of solutions for the city’s housing issues. The Wofoo Foundation donates to Hong Kong’s Lingnan University with funding to establish a laboratory in support of adolescent wellbeing. This adds to a previous donation from the foundation in 2019.

Nobel Peace Prize honors an investigative journalist in the Philippines. This year’s prize acknowledges Maria Ressa for her courage and commitment towards independent and fact-based journalism, according to the Norwegian Nobel Committee. Continue reading on the Nobel Peace Prize’s website →

Accolades for environmental justice organization in India. The nonprofit Legal Initiative for Forest and Environment (LIFE) is one of four global awardees of the 2021 Rights Livelihood Award, recognizing the organization’s contribution in providing access to justice for those protecting the country’s forests and biodiversity. Continue reading in the Hindustan Times →

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Hong Kong-based Yidan Prize Foundation unveils 2021 award winners. Regarded as one of the world’s highest education accolades, the Yidan Prize recognizes individuals and teams with significant contributions to education research and education development. This year’s Yidan Prize for Education Research laureate is Stanford University’s Professor Eric Hanushek, and the Yidan Prize for Education Development laureate is Dr. Rukmini Banerji of the Pratham Education Foundation. Each laureate will be awarded HK$30 million (approximately US$3.9 million). Continue reading on Yidan Prize’s website →

Pakistan’s local startups see record investment. Maqsad raised the nation’s largest edtech funding to date of US$2.1 million, marking the latest milestone among the nation’s startup industry, reports Bloomberg. In total, the country’s startups have raised over US$244 million in 2021—more than the previous six years combined, according to venture capital fund, Invest2Innovate. There is even more room for growth; according to CAPS’ study Business for Good, only 26% of social enterprises in Pakistan receive private investment. Continue reading in Bloomberg →

Tencent’s “99 Giving Day” 2021 raises ¥4.2 billion (approximately US$649.5 million). This year’s event spanned 10 days and saw over 68.7 million donors contribute ¥3.6 billion (approximately US$557 million), while Tencent Charity Foundation pledged to give ¥600 million (approximately US$92.5 million). Continue reading on Tencent’s website →

Bloomberg Philanthropies and Goldman Sachs pledge US$25 million to advancing clean energy solutions in South and Southeast Asia. The new Climate Innovation Fund, to be managed by the Asian Development Bank, will focus on clean energy solutions in India and Vietnam to begin with. This initial philanthropic funding has the potential to unlock up to US$500 million in private and government investments. Continue reading on Bloomberg Philanthropies’ website →

Corporates, governments and foundations continue contributing to Covid-19 relief and aid efforts in the region. BRAC Bank and SME Foundation signed an agreement to provide loans to help small businesses in Bangladesh recover from the impact of the pandemic. The Philippines’ SM Group intensifies vaccination of employees and stakeholders. The Macquarie Group Foundation allocated AU$20 million (approximately US$14.5 million) to 40 community organizations around the world working to combat Covid-19. This included helping seed two Gender Lens Funds in the Philippines. In Vietnam, the American Chamber of Commerce donated over VND5.2 billion (US$227,000) for the purchase of essential medical equipment. Intel Malaysia earmarked a second round of funding amounting to RM2 million (approximately US$477,000) towards relief efforts.

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This report identifies trends in impact investing and gender lens investing in Southeast Asia. It builds on the 2018 report, The Landscape for Impact Investing in Southeast Asia, with updated data on impact investing deals and capital for the period 2017-2019. Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam together possess over half of the region’s impact investing deals. Despite growing markedly during the study period, challenges remain in scaling up gender lens investments. Covid-19 brings additional uncertainty, although it could drive an increase in in-country partnerships and co-investments. Read it here.

This report shines a spotlight on the talent deficit in philanthropy and social sector leadership in Asia. The dearth in talent can limit the ability of the sector to grow when there is insufficient leadership behind it. Recommendations for how challenges in recruitment, integration and retention of talent can be mitigated are discussed. The report draws from 20 interviews conducted in five Southeast Asian countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Read it here.

There is a growing trend in Asia of governments and the private sector coming together to address social needs, and our latest study spotlights these “public-private partnerships for social good.” With 88% of top business leaders in Asia believing such partnerships will become even more common over the next five years, it is more important than ever to understand what they are and how they work.

We conducted an in-depth analysis of 20 notable PPPs for social good spanning 11 Asian economies and 9 sectors to find out. Our report showcases why this trend is taking root, what best-in-class PPPs for social good look like, and how they maximize impact.

Read on to learn more about the 6 strategies that enable public-private partnerships for social good to achieve greater impact, how they can prepare for sustainability, and how they can navigate risks.

Read the press release here, and download the full report below.

This report consolidates findings and maps the current social innovations landscape in higher education institutions across several East Asia economies, including Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam and South Korea. Higher education institutions are seen as critical incubators of social innovation and can help develop solutions to complex local problems. The study employs a mixed methods approach in gathering data: using desktop research, an online survey, interviews and focus groups with stakeholders from the higher education ecosystem. The report concludes with recommendations at the practice, institutional and systemic levels for all economies examined. Read it here.

Wang Xing, Founder of Meituan, gives big. Wang recently donated over US$2 billion worth of shares in the food-delivery giant to his philanthropic foundation. Meituan said the funds will go towards education and scientific research. Wang’s donation is in line with the recent trend of Chinese tech billionaires substantially increasing their philanthropic giving. Continue reading in The Wall Street Journal →

Companies in Asia set up Covid-19 inoculation programs for employees and their families. In India, companies including HCL, Bajaj Auto and Samsung India have launched employee vaccination campaigns. Japanese companies are also stepping up and inoculating employees, which will help the government double the number of daily vaccinations to 1 million. Companies in Southeast Asia rolled out similar initiatives in the second quarter of this year.

Terry Gou, Founder of Foxconn, pledges US$228 million to purchase 5 million Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines as Taiwan sees a spike in Covid-19 infections. The donation is expected to also cover the cost of transportation, cold chain logistics and storage, distribution, and administration. Continue reading in Taiwan News →

92% of youth-led enterprises in the Asia Pacific negatively impacted by Covid-19, according to Youth Co:Lab. The organization—co-created by UNDP and Citi Foundation—recently launched their report, “How Young Entrepreneurs in Asia-Pacific Responded to COVID-19.” It discloses how lockdowns, shrinking demand, supply chain disruptions and a credit crunch challenged these enterprises. They responded by pivoting business strategy, launching new products and services, and transforming business models. The report also showcases over 40 innovative youth-led solutions aiding the region’s Covid-19 recovery.

Japan’s impact investing market has potential to grow to ¥2.64 trillion (approximately US$24 billion). The Global Steering Group for Impact Investment (GSG-NAB) Japan recently launched their report, “The Current State and Challenges of Impact Investing in Japan.” It highlights trends in impact investing—including growing interest from corporates and the issuance of Japan’s first sustainability-linked bond—and forecasts market size. This is encouraging news as there is much room for growth; according to CAPS’ study Business for Good, only 9% of social enterprises in Japan receive private investment.

Asian philanthropists pool US$1.5 million to contribute 600,000 doses towards COVAX global Covid-19 vaccine target. Singapore-based Asia Philanthropy Circle raised this funding from 10 philanthropists and philanthropic organizations. Their pooled donation will be matched by a public charity through Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, bringing total funding to US$3 million. Continue reading on Asia Philanthropy Circle’s website →

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Amid an oxygen shortage in India, businesses and NGOs are stepping in to aid India’s Covid-19 fight. Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani is supplying oxygen from Reliance’s refineries in Jamnagar to Maharashtra at no cost. Indian tech startups Zomato and Paytm have launched donation drives on their platforms to help provide oxygen concentrators. NGOs Hemkunt Foundation and Khalsa Aid India are helping source and distribute oxygen cylinders. NGO Red Crescent Society is leading an initiative to distribute oxygen cylinders through mosques in the Mumbai metropolitan region. Other actors are also stepping in: Star Special Air Gases Private Limited, a gas plant in Manesar, is refilling oxygen cylinders for free. As cases and deaths surge across the country, the government recently announced that spending by corporates for setting up makeshift hospitals and temporary Covid-19 care facilities will qualify as CSR activities under the companies law.

Tencent’s Pony Ma pledges US$7.7 billion of the social-media giant’s money for social causes. This fresh bequest—19 times the company’s donations last year—will go to projects ranging from rural development to carbon neutrality. It will also go towards investing in startups, which aligns with President Xi’s blueprint for national development. Continue reading in Reuters →

Community pantries offer reprieve from Covid-19 hardships in the Philippines. What began as a humble cart with free food has grown into over 300 donation-driven pantries across the country. This multi-sector effort to provide food and essential items to those in need has become an important service as the country faces one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the region. However, unsubstantiated claims by local police and a government task force that these pantries are affiliated with insurgents, a practice called ‘red-tagging’, has led to concern about the safety of volunteers. Continue reading in The Washington Post →

Li Ka Shing Foundation donates HK$30 million (approximately US$4 million) to The Chinese University of Hong Kong. The donation will go towards the expansion of research facilities at the Institute of Health Sciences. The institute was officially opened 14 years ago with support from Li’s foundation, and has developed into the flagship translational biomedical research center in the region. Continue reading in The Standard →

Ride hailing company Uber and NGO HelpAge India help aid vaccination efforts with free rides. Uber’s partnership with NGO HelpAge India will provide 25,000 free rides over the coming months to facilitate the vaccination of the vulnerable and disadvantaged elderly in 19 cities. This follows an earlier initiative where Uber provided 60,000 free rides to aid India’s vaccination drive. Continue reading in The Times of India →

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