12.02.2004 ET

(CSRwire) Shenyang, China - ING today announced that it had signed an agreement with the Liaoning branch of the Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) to support the development of water, sanitation and hygiene programmes in two villages in North-East China. The project is funded through a donation of €180,000 (RMB1.8 million) from ING.

The occasion was marked with a ceremony with official guests from the local and provincial Government and leaders from the province's business community including Vice Governor of Liaoning Province and President of RCSC Liaoning Branch, Mr Teng Weiping. ING was represented by Mr. Patrick Poon, CEO, Greater China of ING Insurance Asia/Pacific.

Running from November 2004 to November 2006, the project is expected to provide safe drinking water and improved toilet facilities for 830 families in Dongbei in Jiaoliudao Township in Wafangdian City (Dalian) and 450 families in Cuigangzi in Lijia Township in Heishan County (Jinzhou Prefecture). In addition, there will be a health education programme initiated to improve the lives of the villagers.

Mr. Poon stated: "As a company with a large number of international activities, we want to live up to our responsibilities to our stakeholders, and our business in Liaoning Province is committed to making a contribution to the socio-economic development of the local communities."

Liaoning is home to ING Capital Life Insurance Company, the insurance joint venture formed with the Beijing Capital Group, which started operations in December 2002 and which in its first year of operations was the third largest life insurer in the city in terms of new premium income. In August 2004, the company announced that it was expanding its operations to Beijing.

The Vice Governor of Liaoning Province and President of RCSC Liaoning Branch Teng Weiping said "In its 100 year history, RCSC Liaoning Branch has upheld the mission of "Protecting lives and health, cultivating a humanitarian spirit, promoting peace and equality", in helping victims through disaster relief and humanitarian activities. Through the introduction of the Netherlands Red Cross, we began collaboration with ING Group on the development of water, sanitation and hygiene programmes which will significantly improve the livelihood and hygiene conditions of the villagers. It is through activities such as this which demonstrates the characteristics of RCSC Liaoning Branch as part of an international organisation which has gained experience by proactively engaging in exchange programmes with external entities."

At the Millennium Summit in September 2000, the United Nations set the ambitious goal to reduce the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water by 50% in 2015. The Dutch have a long tradition of dealing with water. ING, being a Dutch rooted international company, chose to contribute to this Millennium Goal by funding access to safe drinking water for selected areas in which ING is active.

ING is a global financial institution of Dutch origin offering banking, insurance and asset management to over 60 million private, corporate and institutional clients in over 50 countries. With a diverse workforce of over 112,000 people, ING comprises a broad spectrum of prominent companies that increasingly serve their clients under the ING brand. ING currently has a market capitalisation of approximately €39 billion (RMB 390 billion).

ING Group has been active in China since 1886, and operates five businesses spanning insurance, banking and asset management. ING is the only foreign insurance company in China with two life insurance joint ventures, owning a 50 per cent stake in Pacific Antai Life Insurance Company in Shanghai since October 1998, and a 50 per cent stake in ING Capital Life Insurance Company in Dalian since December 2002. In December 2002, ING's asset management joint venture, China Merchants Fund Management was the first Sino-foreign joint venture to receive its operational licence and has subsequently launched four funds. ING's other asset management business, ING Real Estate, is based in Shanghai and manages a portfolio of approximately [US$350] million in property assets. ING Bank is headquartered in Shanghai with a representative office in Beijing and is one of the few foreign players with a Renminbi-, and Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor- and a Derivatives license.

Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) Liaoning Branch was founded in the midst of the Sino-Russian war in 1904 and the only Red Cross Branch in China with a 100 year of history.

The Red Cross Society of China firmly abides by the seven Fundamental Principles of "Humanity, Impartiality, Neutrality, Independence, Voluntary Service, Unity and Universality" and continues to work hard to increase its contribution towards the well-being of the Chinese people and towards world peace and progress. With the support of the Provincial Government and the community, RCSC Liaoning Branch will further the dissemination, advocacy and implementation of the Red Cross Law of the People's Republic of China, assisting the work of the government on humanitarian and social relief activities.

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