Photo taken on Oct. 13, 2017 shows the launching ceremony of the "Philanthropy for SDGs in China" report in Geneva, Switzerland. Philanthropy in China has grown into a sector that has been really contributing a lot to achieving UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), thanks to the fast development of both Chinese economy and society, UN Development Program (UNDP) China Director Agi Veres said on Friday. (Xinhua/Xu Jinquan)
GENEVA, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Philanthropy in China has grown into a sector that has been really contributing a lot to achieving UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), thanks to the fast development of both Chinese economy and society, UN Development Program (UNDP) China director Agi Veres said on Friday.
Launching the "Philanthropy for SDGs in China" report, Veres said China's philanthropy sector has been developing with more Chinese foundations going outside China to contribute to global development.
"It's a very positive picture not only in terms of the contributions and volumes of charity organizations and foundations in China, but also the goodwill induced," the UN official added.
Veres identified two factors behind the growth of philanthropic sector in China. "Firstly, it's very much embedded in the Chinese culture and tradition to contribute to society and to be mindful of how one should live within the society; and secondly, which is more important, is the growing financial means for individuals and foundations to contribute," she said.
The report, jointly launched by the UNDP and the China Foundation Center (CFC), aims to provide recommendations for the further development of the Chinese philanthropic sector under the SDG framework.
A SDG philanthropy platform has been developed to enable foundations to search for relevant information and look for potential partners.
"Such a platform will highly elevate the public credibility of the philanthropic sector in China as a whole, a major concern faced by the charity cause in the country, according to CFC president Tao Ze.
The UNDP hopes to introduce the SDGs as a standardized international benchmark to evaluate and monitor the growth of the philanthropic sector both within China and abroad.
