Direct selling company Amway has donated 1.06 million yuan to set up Amway Spring Bud Teachers Training Center in Deyang, Sichuan province, in a bid to support primary education recovery in the earthquake-affected areas.

The charity project is under cooperation with China Children and Teenagers' Fund (CCTF), which focuses on providing long-term professional education and psychological training for local teachers.

"In the coming few years, the center will mainly concentrate on offering post-earthquake psychological therapy training and disaster self-saving education for teachers," said Hou Jun, vice director with CCTF.

In the first workshop, scheduled to conclude in May, 241 primary school teachers in Sichuan and four volunteer psychological consultants from Amway received professional training covering children's psychological characteristics, psychological therapy practice on kids, as well as psychological self-relief of teachers.

If each teacher can help 50 students, more than 12,000 kids in the earthquake-stricken area will benefit from the first workshop alone, CCTF said.

According to Du Mingming, public affairs association director of Amway China, the 1.06-million-yuan donation was raised by staff and volunteers of Amway Southeast Asia.

"We are very proud that Amway's staff are integrating with our benevolent corporate culture," Du said.

Since last year's Sichuan earthquake, Amway China has donated more than 37 million yuan in both cash exceeding 26 million yuan and other donations valued at over 10 million yuan to the disaster-hit areas.

Amway Southeast Asia contributed an additional 1.19 million yuan.

(China Daily 05/11/2009 page10)