HSBC Bangladesh launches sustainability campaign for covid-19 relief

HSBC in Bangladesh on Tuesday launched a corporate sustainability campaign, Joy of Giving, in partnership with the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism (MoCAT), Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society.

The Joy of Giving initiative will aim to offer support to at least 100,000 people in Bangladesh across the country whose lives have been impacted by the covid-19 pandemic.

Throughout the year, HSBC says it will launch further such community initiatives under the Joy of Giving banner.

MoCAT will assist in providing hygienically cooked food at cost price from selected restaurants under the Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation. The Bangladesh Red Crescent Society will help distribute these meals to the most vulnerable and marginalised people throughout selected district towns in Bangladesh during the holy month of Ramadan and which will continue after Eid.

Md Mahbub ur Rahman, CEO of HSBC Bangladesh, said, "Nothing feels more rewarding than being able to bring a smile to peoples' faces.

"The purpose of these initiatives through our Joy of Giving platform is to help our community at large and its people during the current challenging times." 

Rahman added, "We will continue to support our communities, customers and our employees to keep hope alive. I want to thank the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism and Bangladesh Red Crescent Society for partnering with us in this initiative," he added. 

Speaking on the partnership, Hafiz Ahmed Mazumdar, chairman of the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society said, "The lockdowns sparked by covid-19 threatens millions of livelihoods in the country. Thanks are due to HSBC which come forward with its Joy of Giving platform [...] to find the best way to help people survive this crisis."

HSBC, which is still known locally as the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, has been operating in Bangladesh since 1996, a unit of the British bank's Hong Kong arm.