Marriott International teams up with Yao Foundation to support charitable works in China

SHANGHAI – Marriott International announced a three-year agreement with the Yao Foundation to support educational programmes for children in rural areas of China. The Yao Foundation is a highly regarded charity organisation established in 2008 by former professional basketball star Yao Ming under the auspices of The China Youth Development Foundation and aims to promote the all-round development of Chinese youth by providing them the opportunities to improve their education, sports skills, health and self-esteem.

Since its founding, the Yao Foundation has helped more than 9,000 rural Chinese children who have studied at the 15 Hope Primary Schools it has funded. A building block of the Yao Foundation’s activity, the Project Hope programme aims to provide education to children aged from 6 to 14.

In addition to constructing the schools, the Yao Foundation also teaches Chinese youths basketball skills in order to help them build their sportsmanship and self-confidence by partnering with leading Chinese and multinational companies to initiate and implement a programme called “Yao Foundation Basketball Season”, which in 2012 and 2013 saw 67,000 children attend.

Under the terms of the three-year agreement, Marriott International will donate RMB5 million to the Yao Foundation to establish three Project Hope schools in the Southwestern region of China. The Marriott donation will also be used to support the Yao Foundation Hope Primary School basketball season programme in 2014 and 2015.

The first of the Hope Primary schools that Marriott International will support as part of its relationship with the Yao Foundation will be the Yong Shou Primary School in Shi Dong County, Sichuan Province. The funds will be used to rebuild one of the academic buildings, originally built in 1989, to meet the earthquake resistance criteria. The Yong Shou Primary School covers three villages and one community and has a sustainable student supply with a long-term future.

Speaking at the signing ceremony at the JW Marriott Hotel Shanghai at Tomorrow Square, Simon Cooper, president and managing director of Marriott International Asia, said: “Marriott International has a heritage of putting people first and opening doors to a world of opportunity for its guests, partners and associates. The key to making this happen is education, especially for the younger generations. We are delighted to have the opportunity to work with the Yao Foundation and to make a contribution to support children’s education in China.”

“Yao Ming is one of the most popular athletes and role models for youngsters in China. He is renowned for his tremendous support for rural communities in the country and he understands the value his influence can bring to take a leading role in society as a whole. His views and vision resonate with Marriott International’s core values. Yao’s environmental initiatives echo Marriott’s global commitment to supporting the communities we serve through our Spirit to Serve programmes. Therefore, I believe the collaboration between Marriott International and the Yao Foundation will be an extremely positive and impactful one as we more than doubled in size in China over the next few years to have some 140 hotels in the country.”

Commenting on the relationship with Marriott International, Yao Ming said: “I would like to express my gratitude to Marriott International for its tremendous support of the Yao Foundation and Project Hope. Marriott International is one of the world’s leading hotel companies with a rapidly growing presence in China. Its participation will call for more multinational or domestic companies to share our vision for supporting education for less advantaged children, helping them to create a bright future.”

Sourced: TravelDailyNews