At a charity night in Beijing on Jan. 9, Showyes Project, together with Voices of the Youth (http://qnzs.youth.cn), a social networking platform under All-China Youth Federation, announced their 2017 plan for subsidizing 3,000 poor Chinese students' vocational education.
The theme of the activity is "communication, connection and sharing." The organizer hopes to inspire more companies and individuals to contribute their time and love to help those in difficult situations.
In her opening speech, Guo Meiling, director of the Showyes Project Board, said the Showyes Project aims at helping poor teenagers shake off poverty through skill training.
"Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. If you teach him how to fish, you feed him for life. Showyes Project aims at helping orphans, left-behind children and poverty-stricken students finish vocational training."
Qi Xuesen, director general of China Social Welfare Foundation, said the enterprises should not only produce wealth but also shoulder social responsibility.
"In addition to creating wealth, entrepreneurs should also shoulder their social responsibility. The two are indispensable for the progress of Chinese society," Qi said. "During 2016, China's charity practice made substantial progress. Such progress is inseparable from remarkable contributions of all of us here."
"Pairing each donor with a specific recipient" is a distinctive feature of the 2017 targeted poverty alleviation scheme. Through the arrangement, the organizer hopes the donors can feel the recipients' development and growth, thus mobilizing more small businesses to fulfill their social responsibility.
During the night, Voices of the Youth announced an online application platform through which interested donors can confirm their application. During the activity, participants donated by scanning QR codes. The money raised can help as many as 1,303 poor students to realize their dream of going to school.
Sa Beining, an anchor for the Law Today show on CCTV, participated in the activity as a volunteer. He believed it is more important to understand the needs of the poor.
"It really makes a difference if we can respond to the demand of poor teenagers and help them begin at the same starting line as their peers," Sa said. Sa is also a champion of China's National Presenter Competition.
In 2016, 2,000 poor students in China's Sichuan, Hubei, Hunan, Gansu, Hebei, and Anhui provinces benefited from the subsidy scheme offered by Showyes Project and Voices of the Youth.
