VinaCapital Foundation's mission is to empower the children and youth of Vietnam by providing opportunities for growth through health and education projects.

Mr. Don Lam, CEO of the VinaCapital Group, Vietnam’s leading investment fund, co-founded VCF in 2006 with Ms. Robin King Austin, its Executive Director, to implement development and humanitarian projects in Vietnam in a systematic and transparent way. VCF is a separate entity organized as an American not-for-profit organization, fully tax-deductible 501 (c)(3), and licensed international NGO in Vietnam. VCF is connected to the VinaCapital Group, however, in two key ways:

• The VinaCapital Group pays for all of the foundation's overhead, so VCF has no expenses. That means that 100% of all donations go directly to our program work.
• Mr. Lam wanted to encourage philanthropy in Vietnam, so the VinaCapital Group challenges potential donors by matching 100% of every single donation made to the foundation. It doesn't matter if it's $10 or $10,000—every donation to our medical programs is doubled by the company. That’s our promise.

For more information on the history of VCF, please click here.

• Saved over 1,400 children suffering from congenital heart disease since 2006 through our Heartbeat Vietnam program
• Provided family grants for travel, food, education, and/or medical expenses to 200 families.
• Reached thousands of cardiologists and cardiac surgeons through our monthly International Symposium for Cardiac Care Telemedicine Series, a partnership with the World Heart Foundation and the World Bank Global Development Learning Network, and gained acceptance for the program as a Clinton Global Initiative
• Examined and treated over 3,000 poor children in 14 provinces through our free medical outreach clinics, including diagnostic testing and post-operative check-ups
• Supplied 5 hospitals in 5 provinces with medical equipment valued at over $530,000
• Created the International Management Initiative of Vietnam, the country’s first international-standard executive training institute and gained acceptance for the program as a Clinton Global Initiative.
• Provided onsite training for 24 biomedical technicians and 98 nurses from four central provinces on maintenance and calibration of biomedical equipment. From 2007 – 2009, 339 medical professionals donated 8,250 hours to our surgical, training and outreach programs, valuing $831,500.
• Provided offsite training by sending Vietnamese specialists to Ireland and Switzerland to further their medical skills in a developed country hospital setting.
• Provided Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) training for 156 Vietnamese physicians and 18 trainers in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. In 2009 – 2011 we will be able to reach 640 doctors and nurses for PALS training and 1,100 doctors and nurses for crash cart training. Additionally, we intend to provide 80 crash carts to 40 hospitals across Vietnam (average receipt of two crash carts per hospital.)  This program is a Clinton Global Initiative and is expected to impact the lives of more than 1,500,000 children in the coming years.

Vietnam is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, with a projected GDP growth of around 5% in 2009. Much of this growth, however, is concentrated in urban areas as opposed to the rural areas, where over 70% of the population resides. As the country continues on its fast-paced trajectory, many of the most disadvantaged citizens—in particular the children—remain in abject poverty with no hope of improving their situations. At VCF we are committed to helping those who cannot help themselves, so that they may someday stand on their own feet and take advantage of all the opportunities provided by Vietnam’s bright future.

Since the VinaCapital Group covers all of VCF’s overhead expenses, 100% of all donations go to support our programs. In addition, the funds never go through a middleman and are instead transferred directly to cover program work, such as a child’s hospital bill in the case of a heart surgery.

Not only does your donation go twice as far with the 100% match from the VinaCapital Group, but 100% of it goes directly to our program work as VCF has no overhead expenses.

• $500 will cover the donor’s cost to fund a heart surgery and save a child’s life
• $360 will pay for a Heartbeat Vietnam child’s school fees, nutrition, and post-operative medical exams and medicines for one year
• $1,000 will fund one outreach clinic in the poor provinces, where 200-500 poor children will be examined, diagnosed, treated, and registered for the surgical waiting list if needed
• $2500 will pay for the consolidation and shipment of a container of refurbished medical equipment and supplies for a pediatric hospital in Vietnam
• $3000 will cover the expenses of one International Symposium for Cardiac Care teleconference training session in Vietnam and Asia
• $30,000 will fund an entire year’s worth of Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) training and 20 pediatric crash carts

At VCF we pride ourselves on creating and implementing grassroots and large-scale projects that have long-term benefits to disadvantaged children in Vietnam. These children are the country’s future, and we want to ensure that they have the best possible start in life in terms of health and development.

We provide regular reports and evaluations to our donors so they can see exactly how their donation is helping to change lives. But reading about our work is only one way to experience it; we also strongly encourage our donors to visit our projects and meet our beneficiaries. For those who are unable to come to Vietnam to see our work first-hand, we will do our utmost to bring Vietnam to you through our website. We encourage you to get to know our beneficiaries, staff, volunteers, and your fellow donors as you read and hear their stories.

We have several mechanisms to make it as easy as possible for you to donate.

• ONLINE - Donate securely through Groundspring.org
• BY MAIL - You can send your donation to:

                       The VinaCapital Foundation
                       PO Box 1357
                       Highlands, NC 28741 USA
                 or
                       The VinaCapital Foundation
                       Sun Wah Tower, 17th Floor
                       115 Nguyen Hue, District 1
                       Ho Chi Minh City, VIETNAM

• BY WIRE - Please contact us for wiring instructions.

There is no minimum amount. Every Dollar, every Euro, every Vietnamese Dong helps!

Absolutely. We respect our donors' wishes and will keep all information private to the extent that is allowed by the IRS.

Yes! Through our secure donation partner, Groundspring, you can specify a monthly amount to be debited from your credit card or debit card. You can also tell us what program your money should support.