Foundation helps 2.86 million poor people in 2013

The China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation received 525 million yuan (US$84.5 million) in public donations and aided 2.86 million poor people in 2013, the organization’s Secretary General Liu Wenkui said during a donators’ meeting on March 30 in Beijing.

“On average, about 4 in 100 Chinese people have donated to our foundation, he said, “about 10 million yuan (US$1.6 million) was collected online in 2013, and greater public participation is expected this year.”

Founded in 1989, the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation is the biggest philanthropic organization for poverty reduction in China. It works to improve health conditions, rural livelihoods and educational equality, provide timely humanitarian aid and promote the concept of universal philanthropy.

By the end of 2013, it raised funds and goods worth 9.57 billion yuan (US$1.5 billion) and helped people who live in poverty or needed disaster relief 17.8 million times, according to its annual report.

The foundation also introduced a maternal and child health project into Sudan, and built a friendship hospital to decrease Sudan’s maternal mortality rate, which is the highest in the world. It also provided nutritious meals to poor students in Cambodia and Nepal.