24 Environmental, Social and Governance Report 2022 PILLAR 1: HUMAN CENTRIC As a responsible corporate citizen, ESR strives to contribute positively to the communities where we operate. Supporting education and the infrastructure for learning For our young talent pipeline, we continued to partner with the local institutes of higher learning to offer students with meaningful internship programmes. For example, in Singapore, we recently worked with National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University and Singapore Management University to offer twelve tertiary students internships at various departments within the Group. From Fund Management and Capital to Group Governance and Sustainability, these interns were able to build their skill sets through real work experiences. Going forward, we will enhance our internship programme to include career coaching, engagement sessions to deepen understanding of the ESR business, and a structured feedback process with greater focus on interns’ progress in developing specific skills to better prepare them for the workforce. These students will be mentored by ESR leaders, and those found suitable will be offered career opportunities within ESR upon graduation. The ARA Asset Management Scholarship is also part of the Group’s dedication to encourage outstanding undergraduate students in Singapore needing financial support to pursue higher educational excellence. Moses Song, CEO of ARA, met with six scholarship recipients at the ARA Asset Management Scholars engagement session to share insights on his personal career journey. There are a total of thirteen active scholars, with more than 40 past students awarded with the scholarship to date. In Australia, a similar scholarship programme with the Western Sydney University (WSU) is offered by ESR to selected students. Community Investment We firmly believe that knowledge is fundamental in equipping communities with skills for a sustainable livelihood. Facilitating education through technology, ESR-LOGOS REIT and the Group donated 40 laptops and funded hard disk refurbishment to Bringing You Technology Empowerment (BYTE), a non-profit organisation dedicated to uplifting lives through science, technology and design. In Nigeria, we donated and transported muchneeded IT and computer equipment to support school children at Freedom School in Moniya. This project was completed in collaboration with ARA Venn and Power House Community Networks, a registered charity in the UK sponsoring social action through community outreach. This initiative was envisioned as a community development opportunity to support children in this region living in poverty. Freedom School has been educating pupils in nursery and at both primary and secondary levels since the year 2000. It is estimated around 2,000 children have attended the school and benefitted from having an education at this institute. ESR China helped to raise funds in constructing “Future Classrooms” for children in rural China during the year. The aim was to expand access to modern educational opportunities through collaborating with the Chinese Red Cross Foundation in connection with the Qin Charity Foundation (QCF), a special fund where we were proud to be a partner. The QCF’s Our Future Classroom project was first launched in 2016 and rolled out in over 100 schools nationwide, benefitting more than 80,000 teachers and students. Apart from organising charitable activities to raise funds for rural schools and underprivileged students each year, ESR completed the construction of a Future Classroom in Mohe, China’s northernmost city, strengthening our commitment to the communities in which we operate. Together with ARA, ESR China donated 14 bookshelves and 222 books to the Mohe classroom. Future Classroom in Shandong province CEO of ARA, Moses Song with scholarship recipients
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