Most generous person in China
By Qing Jie (China Daily)
Updated: 2006-07-17 11:10 From then on, China Philanthropy Times' China Charity List is commonly
regarded as an official version, as the newspaper is supported by the Ministry
of Civil Affairs - the special ministry responsible for poverty alleviation and
disaster relief of the nation. The local civil affairs departments directly
provide statistics to the newspaper.
Unlike in the West, the government
is the key channel for social philanthropy on the Chinese mainland, so the
information provided by governmental departments are authoritative.
Liu
Youping, editor-in-chief of China Philanthropy Times, indicates that, in
addition to government information, the newspaper collects statistics from some
non-governmental organizations (NGOs), such as the China Charity Federation and
the Red Cross Society of China, and entrepreneurs themselves. The annual reports
of listed companies and media reports are also important references.
"We
collate and verify the figures carefully and exclude the funds that looks
partially like charity and partially like investment," says Liu.
Rupert
Hoogewerf's list depends on a survey covering 2,500 entrepreneurs around the
Chinese mainland. He also refers to news reports and data from various
foundations.
"To know exactly what the entrepreneurs have done for
society, we constantly attend charity conferences and activities and interview
relevant experts, reporters, insiders and philanthropists themselves," says
Hoogewerf.
He stresses that his ranking is operated in line with
international principles.
Accumulation of the donation figures is based
on add-ups and promised amounts.
China Philanthropy Times chooses to use
the actual donations as references, while Forbes only takes monetary donations
into account. For example, a businessman says he will donate 100 million yuan
(US$12.5 million) to a university and promises to pay 10 million yuan (US$1.25
million) annually from this year. Meanwhile, he purchases facilities valued at 8
million yuan (US$1 million) for the university.
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