With the view that ensuring strong social welfare (ASXH) is also a way of effectively carrying out the Party and State’s policy on economic development—where growth must go hand in hand with caring for the community and ensuring social justice—PetroVietnam has in recent years increasingly promoted social welfare and community-oriented activities, bringing significant results.
What is special at PetroVietnam is that social welfare and community service are launched as emulation movements, just like political tasks. This emulation takes place daily, closely tied to the campaign: “Studying and Following the Moral Example of Ho Chi Minh.”
Over the past two years, PetroVietnam has mobilized each official, employee, and worker to contribute an additional 5–7 workdays on Saturdays and Sundays, generating an extra 70–80 billion VND each year to fund social welfare activities.
One notable point about PetroVietnam is that the more difficult the circumstances, the stronger its social welfare and charitable contributions. In 2008 alone, the Group contributed up to 150 billion VND to social welfare activities, more than half of which came from employees’ voluntary weekend work.
In its social welfare efforts, PetroVietnam not only commits early financial contributions but also sets out major programs to fulfill promises to the community. For example, in 2008, the Group’s leadership and the Oil and Gas Union launched a movement among member units to build 5,000 “Great Unity” houses for the poor across the country, starting from the first month of the year. This was considered a key target in year-end emulation results. By the end of 2008, PetroVietnam had essentially completed the construction of 5,000 “Great Unity” houses.
In 2009, PetroVietnam has been carrying out a series of large-scale community programs. For instance, donating 500 life-saving school bags to students in river regions through the “Fund for Children.” Or mobilizing 25,000 employees and workers to contribute funds, enabling the Group to produce 25,000 “Warmth of Humanity” coats for the elderly in the northern mountains before the harsh winter. Particularly, since early 2009, PetroVietnam has implemented Phase 2 of the program to invest nearly 90 billion VND in a lighting system for Truong Sa Islands (Phase 1 was completed in 2008 with nearly 15 billion VND).
At the same time, the Group has committed to the Government that, from now until 2015, it will support sustainable poverty eradication programs in the six poorest districts of Quang Ngai Province, with immediate support of about 100 billion VND in 2009 for urgent programs.
(Cong Thuong 25/7)
