DBS China Makes Four Grants To Social Enterprises

Just ten days after they announced a grant to four social enterprises in Singapore, DBS’s China division announced on Wednesday the launch of a program to support social enterprise development in China. Similar to its initiative in Singapore, DBS China will provide four social enterprises in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Chengdu grants to offer training for over 2,300 underprivileged individuals over the next two years. The aim is to help them acquire skills for employment. These programs are: 1. Fuping Jiazheng – baby nursing training for migrant women 2. Puki Design – graphic design training for the hearing impaired 3. World of Art Brut Culture – artistic talent discovery classes 4. Dialogue in the Dark – skills training for the visually impaired In a statement by DBS China, the company describes their corporate social responsibility activities centering on supporting social enterprises through a “teach a man to fish” mentality, which they believe will solve social problems and promote public welfare sustainably. The amount of the grants have not been disclosed.

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This is an article from socialenterprisebuzz and this happened after DBS had granted $1 million to social enterprises in Singapore.

Social enterprise is an uprising sector not only in Singapore but in other parts of the world as well, and I feel that other than needing like-minded capable people to assist in their social cause, SEs need financial assistance as well in order to sustain for the first few years.

By providing the four grants, I believe this is a start to the SE sector in China where there are numerous social issues for us to tackle on. I heard stories about China that their toilets are unhygienic  without doors, and other disgusting stuff but that was back in Primary 5 when my classmates went for their immersion program. Thinking back, it may be just a lie by them but it still shocked me as a kid at their sanitary issues. I hope that more SEs who are targeting child mortality, healthcare and poverty issues will be given assistance as well.

I agree with the "teach a man to fish" mentality that DBS China is adopting, but in the case of them providing the grants to the SEs, it is more of a providing the man with the boat and fishing tools than teaching them to fish which is equally important. A man can know how to fish, but without the opportunity to upgrade his skills and equipment, he will not be able to expand into bigger seas for bigger fishes. This is the same to the SEs that are set up anywhere else, not only those in China. With external funding, they are able to expand the number of people benefiting from their work and their organization.