Coca-Cola Vietnam Participates In Anti-Poverty Rally

August 11, 2006 edition

Coca-Cola system employees in Vietnam commemorated the 77th anniversary of the National Labor Union on August 2 by joining more than 5,000 citizens in the March for the Poor, a 1.5-mile run/walk in Ho Chi Minh designed to promote the vital role of education and employment in the fight against poverty.

More than 200 employees and their families participated in the rally by running and serving refreshments from Coca-Cola pushcarts stationed throughout the area.

Launched in October 2002, The Coca-Cola Pushcart Project, a partnership with the Vietnamese Women’s Unions, has provided more than 4,000 vending carts to disadvantaged women nationwide. The initiative empowers women to take control of their future by delivering a sustainable source of income.

The Coca-Cola system also donated three mercy houses to needy families and lined the streets with banners communicating our long-term commitment to defeating poverty. The banners will remain on display through August.

Over the past decade, Vietnam has reduced poverty levels from more than 60 percent in 1990 to 20 percent in 2004, largely due to rapid economic growth in the early 1990s.

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