Many companies adhere to a sense of corporate social responsibility through educational and social programs that benefit a marginalized sector of the population or the society at large. One of these is the Philam Group of companies, which has been a staunch advocate of the importance of giving back to the community. This year, they pledged to do more by institutionalizing its annual donation to intensify its CSR efforts.
In a recent briefing with the press titled, “Doing Good While Doing Well,” Philam Life Chief Executive Officer Aibee Cantos said, “For the past 69 years of philanthropic success, we have been actively enriching the lives of Filipino families through our various CSR programs. This year, we want to do more by pledging a portion of our annual income to ensure our CSR programs continue to expand its reach and enable us to serve more communities.”
One of the notable projects of Philam Foundation, Philam Group’s CSR arm, is the Philam Paaralan, which aims to build classrooms in calamity-stricken areas around the country, in coordination with the Department of Education. To date, the program has constructed 101 classrooms for the past four years.
The Philam Paaralan classrooms are typhoon-resilient, fully-furnished and complete with water sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities that are essential in providing schoolchildren a healthy environment conducive for learning.
The Philam Group, composed of Philam Life, BPI-Philam, and Philam Asset Management Inc., (PAMI), has pooled their combined annual donation amounting to Php31 million, which will be used to finance more Philam Paaralan classrooms and other noteworthy projects. A ceremonial check turnover from the Philam Group to Philam Foundation was held during the event.
Also present during the event were AIA Regional CEO Gordon Watson, Philam Foundation President Max Ventura, Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Armin Luistro, and Insurance Commissioner Emmanuel Dooc.
In his speech, Commissioner Dooc commended the Philam Group’s selfless act of institutionalizing its annual donation that would benefit more marginalized sectors of society.
DepEd Secretary Luistro also gave a short message, thanking the Philam Group for being a forerunner in providing support to the education sector. The DepEd has been working closely with the Foundation in identifying schools that are most in need of new classrooms.
In closing, Cantos said, “Given Philam Group’s strong financial position, we want to be able to ‘do good while doing well,’ and we are happy to create a sustainable contribution to the community through the Philam Paaralanprogramme. In line with our thrust to empower more Filipinos to live longer, healthier and better lives, we want to build more classrooms and give more children a healthy education and a better life for the future.”
For more information on Philam Life and Philam Foundation, please visit www.philamlife.com.