World over ING has strengthened its name as a good corporate citizen. The ING Chances for Children initiative (CFC) a global programme in partnership with UNICEF is to educate 50,000 underprivileged children in three countries, Ethiopia, India and Brazil by 2008. In India the focus is primarily in the districts of Dharampuri and Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu. Through the national Child labour Elimination (NCLP) bridge schools, ING provides much needed support to UNICEF, to fund, monitor, and provide children with quality primary education

The Indian arm of the Chances for Children programme is run by the support of INGs’ business units in India (ING, ING Life Insurance and ING Investment Management ) through the ING Vysya Foundation.

The Foundation was set up almost 3 year ago and was actively involved in the post Tsunami rehabilitation of the victims. ING Group set up a dedicated Tsunami Support account. In India, the Foundation partnered with five NGO’s providing much needed financial support, from rebuilding of schools to providing fishing boats, giving much needed hope to destroyed lives.

The Indian chapter of CFC involves the partnership of the Foundation with 7 NGO’s working in primary education. Not only does the Foundation provide much needed financial support to these organizations but also runs strong voluntary programmes giving the employees a chance to meet the children, work with them and take ownership and responsibility for the vision of it’s partners The Foundation creates systems that ensure CSR activities within the organization . Various programmes are initiated with the employees, whether it is taking 100 children for a day out to the planetarium or watching a film with them. It collectively influences the culture of the organization; and also provides the employees with an opportunity to contribute to the vision of the organizations CSR.

Recently ING Vysya Foundation launched it’s initiative “ Run Ricky Run” . In this initiative, for every run Ricky makes the Foundation will sponsor one child to go to school through its association with its NGO partner in Bangalore, SUKRUPA.

Whether we are addressing health care, poverty or human rights issues, there is no better way than through the corridors of education. The main focus of the Foundation in India is to support not for profit organizations working in the area of education.