Spreading their wealth. Forbes Asia released its 2011 rich list and Malaysia's top 40 richest individuals increased their wealth by 22% from last year. On the ninth spot of that list is Berjaya Corporation Bhd founder Tan Sri Vincent Tan. Last week, he pledged to donate at least half of his wealth to charity through the Giving Pledge campaign. Tan set up The Better Foundation Malaysia in 1997. It is focused on causes such as education and improving oneself.
Say yes or no to the philanthropy by the wealthy in China. Lu Dezhi, Chairman of Huamin Charity Foundation writes that both the rich and poor should be involved with charity and that they can complement and reinforce each other in China. He believes that modern charity should work towards closing the gap between the rich and poor to achieve societal harmony. (The article was originally posted on China Philanthropy Magazine.)
The world has 1,011 billionaires and 403 are in the U.S. Mainland China has 64 and there are 24 in Hong Kong. Would these billionaires join the Giving Pledge? Why and why not? Or, perhaps Asia needs their own version of a giving pledge? Those of us in the philanthropic field watched and waited for the philanthropists in Asia to respond. Across Asia, many editorials and news articles have been written on the subject but we have yet to see an orchestrated effort of wealthy individuals comes together to make such a pledge. Will this change once Gates and Buffett visit China in late September? Gates and Buffett plan to meet a "large group of Chinese wealthy people." In addition, they will be visiting India in March 2011.
A spokesperson for the Giving Pledge project said that the trips are to:
...explain it to people in those countries and maybe give a little bit of our experience. And if they wish to take what we think is a good idea and run with it, we'll be cheering. But we will not be leading those efforts.
Responses from Asia
Will an Indian Billionaire Take the Pledge? Two of the richest five people in the world live in India but no one has joined the pledge. The article reports that the spokeswoman for Dilip Shanghvi, chairman of Sun Pharmaceutical said Mr. Shanghvi "would prefer not to talk on personal philanthropy." Emily Harrison, founder of Innovaid, says that "the channels for giving are fewer and, more often than not, riddled with corruption." She then goes on to say that Indian's want 100% of their funding to go into "tangible purposes" and not administrative costs. Hmmm... what do you think? Would our readers agree with Emily?
Giving Pledge (Malaysia). The author talks about how Malaysian values differ from Gates and others in the U.S. The author states "other billionaires feel that they made their money with their own abilities and therefore justified to claim all their wealth as their own." Malaysian society "would not expect any rich man to take out half of his wealth."
Giving Pledge (Korea). An editorial in the Korea Times says that owners of family-run conglomerates (chaebol) are too stingy to give their wealth for philanthropic purposes. The author goes on to say that "billionaire's donate their wealth back to society when they try to avoid or mitigate punishment. However, compare the author's comment with a recent study by the Beautiful Foundation that found 96% of wealthy Koreans have experience with charitable giving. While the study found that wealthy Koreans on average gave $500 a month and not half of their wealth, there is a trend that philanthropy is growing.
Matthew Bishop on the Giving Pledge
Matthew Bishop is The Economist's New York bureau chief. He is also the author (with Michael Green) of Philanthrocapitalism: How the Rich Can Save the World. Here he talks about the Giving Pledge and offers some thoughts on its possible success:
* I-bankers rush to welfare street. Article in The Times of India featuring bankers leaving the for-profit world and using their skills to help the underprivileged.
* Increasing corporate responsibility awareness. Bursa Malaysia will establish an environmental, social and Governance (ESG) Index to attract investors with increasing awareness of corporate responsibility. Marcus Evans will be holding Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability 2010 conference on June 21 and 22 in Malaysia.
* Microfinance advisor firm Unitus Capital strengthens management. Narayan Ramachandran joins Unitus Capital as Co-Chairman and Terry Alan Ferris is the new CEO. Ramachandran was formerly the CEO and Country Head of Morgan Stanley India. Ferris was Head of Philanthropy of UBS Asia.
* To prevent human trafficking, Cambodia bans international marriages to Koreans. Interesting article on The Asia Foundation's blog, In Asia, about the Cambodia's new law to ban international marriages to Koreans in order to prevent trafficking of Cambodian women. Brokered marriages are banned but love matches are allowed. The blog cites the inhuman treatment of women during "marriage-tours" arranged by brokers. They arrange up to 300 Cambodian women for a single Korean client. Currently, "60 percent of all international marriages in Cambodia are with Korean men."
The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship is searching for outstanding social entrepreneurs in Asian countries where we do not currently have national competitions. Schwab Foundation is looking for social entrepreneurs who are innovators implementing practical and sustainable solutions on the ground to address problems in a wide variety of areas, including (but not limited to) health, education, poverty alleviation, the environment, financial inclusion and enterprise development.
In terms of benefits, the winner(s) will join the Schwab Foundation’s community of accomplished social entrepreneurs around the world – a community that shares knowledge and experience while exchanging best practices. The Schwab Foundation seeks to help social entrepreneurs showcase their innovative, market-based social impact initiatives, thus, enhancing opportunities for business growth. Our social entrepreneurs have access to the meetings of the World Economic Forum (our sister organization) and are provided with an unparalleled platform to connect with government, corporate, intellectual and media leaders.
Candidates working in the following countries are encouraged to apply: China, South Korea, Taiwan, Mongolia, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka.
To apply or to view the criteria, selection process and benefits, please visit: http://www.schwabfoundseoy.org/asia. Competition closes on 31 March 2010.
Philanthropy in Asia is growing and what better way to track this growth than to see how for-profit firms, especially those in wealth management and consulting, are offering their services to the field. The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) features an interview with Vincent Chin, Partner and Managing Director of their Kuala Lumpur office. Mr. Chin lead's BCG's Financial Institutions practice in Southeast Asia. He is also BCG's regional leader of their philanthropy work in the Asia-Pacific region. BCG recently developed "The Silver Book," a strategic guide for companies in Malaysia to formulate their social responsibility agenda.
Mr. Chin says: Unlike in the West, Asian economic government systems tend to fall either far right (capitalist) or far left (socialist) of center. In other words, the governments here provide either a big safety net or a little one. In the latter, it is up to the wealthy citizens to give back. This tradition of philanthropy has been well practiced. For instance, in Singapore, as far back as a century ago, when it was still a British colony, rich entrepreneurs like Eu Tong Sen were already building schools and hospitals for the community.
This tradition remains, and business executives regularly establish social foundations when they retire. The challenge, however, with this sort of giving is that it is highly dependent on the personal wealth of the benefactor. This is exacerbated by the fact that Asian countries are becoming wealthier and therefore are able to provide for the public good better than in the past. This means that social foundations today have to be better planned and better run to achieve impact.
To this end, a small number of experienced guides in Asia (including BCG) have helped philanthropic organizations to become more impactful. Our advice is centered on helping these benevolent institutions and individuals become more meaningfully involved in projects that are more efficient, accountable, and ultimately more socially impactful.
Asian Philanthropy Forum is a global online community where donors, philanthropy advisors, nonprofit professionals, and other social sector investors unite, act, share best practices, and leverage their philanthropic capital and knowledge to advance human justice and security, improve quality of life, and to protect the environment. The Forum promotes philanthropy in Asia, to Asia, and for Asia through a growing network of international contributors.
Unique Lives that Inspire Asia Dien featured in The Diplomat as one of three women whose actions and ambitions help empower and enrich lives throughout Asia.
