Pham Thi Ngan has initiated a project called TOHE to design and produce t-shirts, cloth bags and home décor appliances. All the items produced are beautifully decorated with art work provided by disadvantaged children living in shelters in Vietnam. The TOHE idea brings creativity to the children’s lives, whilst providing a sustainable income source through the sale of the products. The project also champions the cause for a reduction in the use of polythene bags which are harmful to the environment, by producing biodegradable cloth bags for shopping.

Social Enterprise isn’t about charity; it’s about developing a sustainable business model with a social issue at its very heart. Gone are the days where NGO’s can rely solely on donor funding to sustain their activities; this has led to the advent of Social Enterprise. A for profit, sustainable business model where social and environmental issues drive the business, not profit for shareholders.

In Vietnam the British Council is partnering with the Centre for Social Initiatives Promotion (CSIP) and Social Enterprise London. We work in the following 4 areas:

• Raising awareness of the benefits that Social Enterprise can offer to individuals, communities, business and government.

• Supporting start-ups with easily accessible information, practical advice and identifying and developing social venture funds with partners.

• Developing and implementing learning and mentoring programmes based on UK and international experiences in social enterprise development. Developing a network of UK and in-country partners - mobilising their expertise  to develop training programmes, mentoring and awards schemes.

• Linking and partnering social enterprises, government institutions and communities in the UK with their counterparts in East Asia, China and South East Europe to develop and share new approaches to address social, economic and environmental problems through social enterprise.

Get involved today – contact us at simon.beardow@britishcouncil.org.vn