The VNH FOUNDATION is a charitable organization based in Zurich, Switzerland that supports disadvantaged children and young adults in Vietnam and to a lesser extent, its neighboring countries. Formed as a result of a perceived social responsibility towards the people of Vietnam, the foundation is the creation of Juerg Vontobel and VIETNAM HOLDING ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD. (VNHAM), a strategic investment company investing in the privatization of Vietnamese state owned companies.

A fixed percentage of the incentive fees paid by VIETNAM HOLDING LTD. to VNHAM are assigned to the VNH FOUNDATION. After one year of corporate existence, VNHAM has donated USD 740'000 to its Foundation. During its initial period, all administrative and overhead costs are covered by VNHAM outside of the VNH FOUNDATION budget. Therefore, 100% of these initial funds will be going into the foundation's projects.

Besides these VNHAM funds, the VNH FOUNDATION solicits donations by other philanthropic organizations and wealthy individuals to support the projects. This allows the Foundation to multiply its own financial resources. It also provides opportunities to other charitable institutions and private individuals to benefit from VNH's insight into Vietnam and of its professional infrastructure. This approach ensures that the funds of the sponsors and co-sponsors are spent entirely on the designated project.

The projects themselves are chosen through direct cooperation with private as well as state organizations in Vietnam, such as the Association for the Support of Vietnamese Handicapped and Orphans (ASVHO) and the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA). The selection criteria for the chosen project include level of urgency, professionalism, efficiency, sustainability and amount of state-funded support.

The Foundation's primary objectives are to:

• Identify worthy projects where funds allocated by the VNH Foundation and its partner organizations will benefit targeted recipients with maximum efficiency.
• Identify other agencies with objectives consistent with those of the Foundation, submit projects for co-sponsorship, and coordinate funding with project supervision.
• Proactively track and report regularly on the progress of individual projects to the Foundation's board and its cosponsors.
• Encourage the staff of VNHAM to be personally involved in the Foundation's objectives by contributing their time and efforts to its projects.