CapitaLand and CMMT to enrich learning journeys of over 380 children with My Schoolbag donation worth RM250,000 and school refurbishment projects
Kuala Lumpur, 19 November 2018 – CapitaLand and CapitaLand Malaysia Mall REIT Management Sdn. Bhd. (CMRM), the manager of CapitaLand Malaysia Mall Trust (CMMT), today flagged off the second CapitaLand Volunteer Day in Malaysia, in conjunction with their annual signature corporate social responsibility programme, My Schoolbag. Over two days, more than 150 staff volunteers in four cities will be involved in enriching the learning journeys of 386 underprivileged children by giving out schoolbags as well as school and daily necessities worth RM250,000, and refurbishing four primary schools. The donation is made possible with funding from CapitaLand Hope Foundation (CHF), CapitaLand’s philanthropic arm.
Mr Tan Seng Chai, Group Chief People Officer of CapitaLand Group and Executive Director for CapitaLand Hope Foundation, said: “As a responsible real estate company, we continue to leverage our network and galvanise our employees globally to contribute to the communities where we operate in. Beyond financial donations, we also dedicate our time and expertise to support the education needs of underprivileged children. As a strong advocate of volunteerism, CapitaLand provides employees with three days of Volunteer Service Leave towards building a more inclusive community. Through CapitaLand platforms like My Schoolbag and CapitaLand Volunteer Day, we rally our employees to create stronger bonds among them as well as the society at large.”
Ms Low Peck Chen, CEO of CMRM, said: “We are heartened by the positive impact that CapitaLand’s My Schoolbag programme has brought to the lives of children in Malaysia since the programme started in the country in 2011. With the support of our staff volunteers, My Schoolbag has to-date reached out to about 4,900 children in Malaysia with a donation of more than RM1 million. School bags symbolise the power of knowledge, and it is our hope that they will give the children beneficiaries a head start in their education and quest for a better future. This year, we are leveraging our real estate expertise to expand our support. In addition to schoolbags, we are also enhancing the learning environment of four schools across the nation, supporting the growth and development of underprivileged children in the communities we operate in.”
Supporting children from low-income families, CapitaLand staff volunteers based in Selangor today visited SK Abdul Samat, where they helped to replace chairs and tables in classrooms, reorganise the computer lab with new hardware supplies, as well as paint the classroom walls. In addition, they stocked the school’s library with new story books, reference books and other reading materials. The volunteers also interacted with the children beneficiaries and handed out schoolbags, school uniforms and stationery items as part of the My Schoolbag programme. Staff volunteers will carry out similar activities in SK La Salle Jinjang 2 in Kuala Lumpur, SK Padang Tembak in Penang and SK Balok in Kuantan on 21 November.
With funding support from CHF, My Schoolbag is a CapitaLand initiative that focuses on providing schoolbags containing school and daily necessities to underprivileged school children so that they can focus on learning and strive for a better future through education. From 2009 to 2017, CHF donated about S$4.1 million in support of My Schoolbag, benefitting over 147,000 children in Singapore, China, India, Japan, Malaysia and Vietnam. In 2018, CHF is committing over S$400,000 to support more than 16,000 underprivileged children in Asia through My Schoolbag.