ICBC has recently granted bursaries to 50 excellent poor students in Jinyang County, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province who have been admitted to universities this year. This is the latest move by ICBC in poverty alleviation through education in designated areas.

An official with ICBC said that ICBC has focused on education as the key to reduce poverty. It has donated over RMB 46 million to build 16 primary schools, dormitory and teaching buildings, three plastic-rubber playgrounds for 12 middle and primary schools as well as 67 “love kitchens”. The Bank’s “Sailing Project – Funding Excellent College Students in Poverty” has continued for 12 consecutive years, helping over 2,100 students get into colleges. The  “Candlelight Program – Commendation of Outstanding Teachers in Mountain Villages” has lasted for 13 consecutive years, commending 1,610 person-time teachers. The “Candlelight Program –Training for Outstanding Teachers in Mountain Villages” has been carried out to sponsor 500 teachers to receive training. The program named “New Great Wall – ICBC Self-improvement Class” has been carried out for 7 consecutive years, helping poor students who are just admitted to high schools till graduation from college. ICBC Sichuan Branch has conducted “One-to-one Thousand Student Aid Program”, mobilizing employees to help 1,373 collage, middle and primary school students from poor families. In the future, ICBC will continue to carry out the “Sailing Project – Funding Excellent College Students in Poverty” to fund students from poor families. It will continue to carry out the campaigns named “Candlelight Program – Commendation of Outstanding Teachers in Mountain Villages” and Candlelight Program – Training for Outstanding Teachers in Mountain Villages to encourage them to engage in rural education.. From this year, ICBC will implement recruitment policies supporting poor college graduates or those from state-level poor counties.

In line with the unified national plan for poverty alleviation, ICBC has started to help Tongjiang County, Nanjiang County, Chengkou County (after governed under Chongqing in 1999, it was no longer designated as the place to be supported by ICBC) and Wanyuan City of Sichuan Province  since 1995. Over the past 21 years, donations worth RMB 120 million have been contributed, in addition to loans of RMB 8 billion to support poverty alleviation programs. ICBC has blazed a new trail in poverty alleviation combining education, health, industry, green, financial and disaster relief alleviation. ICBC and its Sichuan Branch have been awarded the outstanding poverty alleviation units by the Poverty Alleviation Office of the State Council. In 2016, ICBC’s alleviation target in Sichuan is expanded to Jinyang County. This April, ICBC donated RMB 5 million to Jinyang County to support poverty alleviation projects related to education, health, industry and ecology. In the future, donation will be increased on yearly basis.