Brands that Care
Special Feature
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2021
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Corporations step up amid trying times This is set up at the triage, where the first patient encounter happens,” Dr. Marieta Julia Germar of the UP-PGH Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology explained. Last September 14, PLDT extended its helping hand to Cebuano frontliners, with smartphones being donated to LGUs and their vaccination operations center. PPEs were also given including surgical masks, medical gowns and vitamins. Jimmy Chua, the Head and Vice President of PLDT’S Customer Relationship Management, explained their help to the city of Cebu the day after donations were made. “As we all know, this COVID crisis is far from over. In fact, we are experiencing another surge in cases. We at
By Rommel Bong R. Fuertes Jr.
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ITH millions of Filipinos needing help at such a difficult time, private sectors and corporations have ramped up their roles as companies that take pride in their Corporate Social Responsibilities.
CSR efforts aren’t focused on one certain problem, though, as corporations lend help on various fronts. San Miguel Corporation, for instance, is more than just a manufacturer of liquor, coffee and food as its initiatives are laid out on its “World We Want” website that shows their efforts in helping citizens in need. One of the most recent CSR works SMC did was when lockdowns resurfaced in the Metro in the face of the Delta variant surge. SMC launched “Project Pearls”, which provided the poor with much needed food. In cooperation with the NGO One Tondo, it sent out food for the poorest of the poor. “We will operate our food facilities 24/7. This isn’t about making profits. We have a responsibility to make sure that food is made available to as many people as possible,” SMC president Ramon S. Ang said. Meanwhile, SM Foundation has helped health care workers tremendously over the past year, as well. With over P400 million in donations, SM provided workers with Personal Protective Equipment but the most notable one was its purchase of 25 ICU-grade ventilators to hospitals treating more COVID-19 patients. Other than these equipment, SM has also established Emergency Quarantine Facilities to ease the burden of overflowing patients in Metro hospitals. These EQFs are located at cities with high numbers of COVID-19 cases, particularly in Camp Crame, Quezon, Villamor Air Base, Pasay
At the opening of Better World EDSA, our COVID-19 testing facility, SMC President and COO Ramon S. Ang explained why San Miguel continues to go all-out in helping the country beat the pandemic. (San Miguel Facebook Page)
PLDT Group, PLDT-Smart Foundation respond to call for help of Cebu’s frontliners St. Anthony Mother & Child Hospital
URC donates products to several hospitals.
and at the AFP Health Service Command in V. Luna. Universal Robina, a leading food production corporation, has also helped HCWs since April of last year.
Cherry spearheads donation of medical supplies Frontliners from Las Piñas General Hospital headed by Chief of Hospital Rodrigo H. Hao, MD, FICS, MPA Medical Center Chief II, gracefully receive the medical donation IN these trying times, who else deserves gratitude more than the heroic frontliners? From delivery riders and public utility vehicle drivers to medical practitioners, they selflessly devote their time and service to curb the spread of COVID-19. As a way of paying forward, CHERRY— through its corporate foundation MSN Foundation—took the lead in donating medical supplies to 38 hospitals across NCR. The distributed supplies including HazMats, KN95 face masks, and thermal guns, are vital at this time and would help the health sector in combating the COVID-19 virus. Some of the recipients were Ospital ng Maynila; Tondo Medical Center; Santa Ana Hospital; Gat Andres Bonifacio Memorial Medical Center; San Lazaro Hospital; Ospital ng Tondo; Justice Jose Abad Santos General Hospital; Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital; National Center for Mental Health; San Lorenzo Ruiz General Hospital; Ospital ng Malabon; Valenzuela Medical Center; Pasig City General Hospital; Quirino Memorial Medical Center; Pasay City General Hospital; Southern Tagalog
RTNMC spends P5.2M for COVID-19 relief operation
Medical Regional Hospital; National Kidney and Transplant Institute; and Navotas City Hospital among many others. Since its beginning, MSN Foundation has been the vanguard of quality programs that are of service to various communities. Thus, it continues to provide assistance, chiefly to the medical sector and frontliners, especially in these trying times. CHERRY caRES is the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) principle of Cherry Mobile that stands for Customers, Natural Resources, Employees, and Society. It embodies the deep desire of the company to give back, share, care, and create a positive impact not just for its own people but more for the greater whole. Since 2011, CHERRY caREs laid the groundwork for the establishment of MSN Foundation, now the corporate foundation of CHERRY. It has spun various education, health, environment, livelihood, and community development programs in the hope of improving lives and igniting change in the nation one community at a time.
Other than food donations with the help of the Gokongwei Brothers Foundation, URC also helped hospitals in need of vital medical tools by donating to several hospitals a number of BOPP films. “The BOPP films serve as a barrier between the healthcare worker and the PUI/COVID-19 positive patient.
PLDT and Smart are helping all the agencies tasked to roll out the vaccinations as much as we can.” Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation (RTNMC), on the other hand, has also helped several COVID-19 response efforts. Their assistance, made in collaboration with Coral Bay Nickel Corporation, donated over six million pesos in relief assistance to families struck by the pandemic. The deal was made in July of last year. It may still be a long way to go before we reach herd immunity, or for the global pandemic to be put to rest, but these private sectors and their CSR efforts are of big help in getting our sense of normalcy back in the country.
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Brands that Care
Special Feature
BDO Foundation is Enterprise Asia awardee for 5th straight year
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DO Foundation’s corporate citizenship initiatives were recognized once again as among the most outstanding in Asia. For its efforts to help control the spread of the coronavirus, support frontliners and aid underserved sectors of society vulnerable to the effects of the pandemic, the corporate social responsibility arm of BDO Unibank was recently awarded by international nongovernmental organization Enterprise Asia.
For the fifth consecutive year, BDO Foundation was recognized by Enterprise Asia at the prestigious Asia Responsible Enterprise Awards.
The award was officially conferred witnessed by audiences across the con- five consecutive years now. tries this year, BDO Foundation’s entry at the Asia Responsible Enterprise tinent. BDO Foundation has received Out of the more than 200 nominees was among 69 honored at AREA. The Awards (AREA) 2021, a virtual event recognition from Enterprise Asia for Enterprise Asia received from 16 coun- foundation was one of only five Philippine organizations awarded as other winners were based in Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. The award-giving body acknowledged the foundation for its pooled testing program, relief assistance for families affected by the health crisis, and COVID-19 initiatives designed to support health workers. As part of its COVID-19 response, BDO Foundation funded the pilot implementation of pooled testing in the Philippines. The mass testing intervention—considered a game-changer in efforts to curb the transmission of the virus—was carried out in Makati, Cebu, and Mandaluyong for 18,000 market vendors, public utility drivers, and medical frontliners. The foundation also embarked on a donation drive, donated 10,000 test kits to 10 hospitals, distributed 8,000 food packs in disadvantaged communities on lockdown, and supported the donation of 1,900 hygiene kits to repatriated overseas Filipino workers. It supported the government’s efforts to facilitate the movement of frontliners during quarantine and to accelerate the distribution of financial assistance to beneficiaries of the Social Amelioration Program. Further, the Foundation facilitated the donation of 200,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines to the government. “Guided by BDO Unibank’s ‘We find ways’ philosophy, BDO Foundation has made significant strides to promote the health and well-being of Filipinos,” BDO Foundation president Mario A. Deriquito said as he accepted the prestigious award. “Moving forward, we will continue to help underserved sectors of a society grappling with the pandemic. We will find ways to help communities recover from COVID-19, mindful of our commitment to sustainable development and nation-building.” Now in its tenth year, AREA honors corporations in Asia that promote sustainable and socially responsible business practices. The awards program is organized by Enterprise Asia, an NGO that recognizes responsible entrepreneurship in the areas of green leadership, investment in people, health promotion, social empowerment, corporate governance, circular economy leadership, and responsible business leadership.