Golf event raises over $60,000 to support paediatric cancer patients

Bringing together 130 domestic and international golfers, this year’s tournament marked the 20-year journey of the annual platform that Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam (SPVB) created to show gratitude to its partners and share the value of contributing to society.

At this year's tournament, SPVB, its longstanding partners, and trusted friends raised more than VND1.5 billion ($62,034) through donations and the auction of fine art and other special items. The funds will support paediatric cancer patients together with other organisations and individuals through the Ho Chi Minh City Sponsoring Association for Poor Patients.

Started in the early 2000s, the SPVB Friendship Golf Tournament is organised annually to express gratitude to those who have supported the company throughout the year. The 2000s witnessed a historic cataclysm in central Vietnam, and the golf tournament has evolved from its inception to become a platform for partners and friends to create shared value, give back to society, and meet critical needs in the community.

Speaking at the event, Jahanzeb Khan, CEO and general director of SPVB said, "During our nearly 30 years of operations in Vietnam, our core values have been giving back to society, growing for good, and most importantly, contributing to the community where our company operates."

"The SPVB Friendship Golf Tournament symbolises all of these values. We have many sustainable development programmes, of which the Friendship Golf Tournament is an initiative that we are really proud of. It’s a platform where strategic partners share common values. The company is committed to keeping this tradition and having an even greater impact on society," Khan continued.

Suntory PepsiCo's sustainable development programmes in Vietnam include Mizuiku - I Love Clean Water, which educates the younger generation on saving and protecting water resources, Million Trees - For a Green Vietnam that plants trees in watershed forests, Million Meals, in collaboration with PepsiCo, to give meals to people in difficult circumstances, and the volunteer programme Helping Hands where employees fundraise to support the community.

The company has accompanied the Ho Chi Minh City Sponsoring Association for Poor Patients since the early years of its establishment. Over two decades of persistence, the golf tournament has donated more than VND20 billion ($827,130) to help build medical projects and schools, as well as providing access to clean water for more than 30,000 people.

Together with its benefactors, the tournament has subsidised the treatment costs of 380 heart surgeries and more than 400 paediatric cancer treatments nationwide.

Suntory makes sustainability commitments with Mizuiku project On December 2 in Hanoi, Suntory Group and Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam Beverage (Suntory PepsiCo) held a ceremony to summarise the eight-year journey of the “Mizuiku - I love clean water” programme in Vietnam. Shigeaki Kazama, executive officer and division deputy COO at Sustainability Management Division under Suntory Group, talked with VIR’s Thanh Dat about the steps the company is going to take toward its sustainable commitment.

Suntory Group and MoET take action to preserve water resources Suntory Group, Suntory PepsiCo and the Ministry of Education and Training (MoET), together with the Central Council of Ho Chi Minh Young Pioneer Organisation, hosted a ceremony for a clean-water initiative in Hanoi on March 20.

Suntory Group deepens sustainable footprint in Vietnam The “Mizuiku – I love clean water” programme is an education initiative for nature and water unique to Suntory Group designed for the next generation to realise the beauty of nature, which has brought benefit to more than 2.6 million people at all ages across Vietnam after eight years. VIR’s Ha Thuy has an exclusive interview with Masaaki Fujiwara, chief sustainability officer of Suntory Group.