SK Innovation signed the “Vietnam Social Enterprise” memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the state news outlets, Yonhap News Agency (Yonhap News) and Vietnam News Agency (VNA), on February 18 to provide greater support toward the restoration of mangrove forests and social enterprises in the region.

The signing ceremony was attended by Cho Sung-boo, CEO of Yonhap News; Nguyen Duc Loi, general director of VNA; and Lim Soo-gil, Head of SK Innovation PR Office. Under this MOU, Yonhap News and VNA will help to promote the PR efforts in the region to assist the social enterprises and mangrove restoration efforts.

SK Innovation will join the Vietnam Social Value Alliance, which has about 12 member organizations, including Yonhap News and VNA, to establish a social enterprise in late March, which will serve as the focal point of their efforts in fundraising and other activities required for the Mangrove Reforestation Project.

Until last November, SK Innovation has already signed an MOU with the Trà Vinh Province Department of Planning and Investment, Trà Vinh University, UN Environment Programme (UNEP), Dream Sharing Social Cooperative, and other regional government, educational institutions, and nongovernment organizations (NGOs).

This social enterprise will take over the operations of the Mangrove⁽¹⁾ Reforestation Project, which began last year under SK Innovation, witch activities including raising mangrove saplings and developing tangible and intangible contents related to mangrove forests.
(1) Mangrove: A tree that grows in tidal flats or river estuaries in subtropical or tropical regions. It is known for its outstanding carbon storage capacities and is thought to be effective as a means of response to global climate change. Despite playing a very important role in the coastal ecosystem and flood mitigation, unrestrained development has significantly damaged the mangrove forests of Vietnam.

As one of the supported themes by the SK Innovation’s 1% Happiness Sharing Fund⁽²⁾, the Mangrove Restoration Project aims to support acitivities related to the restoration of mangrove forests in Vietnam such as mangrove saplings planting in Tra Vinh Province and mangrove research at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology.
(2) 1% Happiness Sharing Fund: A matching grant fund that adds together the voluntary donation of SK Innovation employees (1% of their base pay) and the grant matched by the company in 1:1 ratio to support partner companies, vulnerable groups, and global corporate social responsibility activities.

SK Innovation has already planted 35,000 saplings over the course of 3 volunteer events involving its members and the residents of Trà Vinh Province in an area nearly 110,000m² wide.

▲ SK Innovation employee volunteers take part in the 3rd Mangrove Voluntary Planting

Once the social enterprise is established, it will generate significant environmental values by helping to mitigate the effects of climate change through the mangrove forest’s excellent carbon storage capacity. Furthermore, it is expected to contribute toward greater social values as well by creating new jobs.

“This agreement brings the representative news agencies of two countries together not only for supporting the job creation and environmental restoration efforts in Vietnam but also opening a new chapter in media diplomacy,” Yonhap News CEO Cho Sung-boo said. He continued, “We will take on that responsibility with the best of our abilities.”

General Director Nguyen Duc Loi of VNA has also commented, “This MOU will be a milestone in the acceleration of Vietnam-Korea relationship.” He stated that “through our cooperation with Yonhap News Agency, we will work hard to expand the horizons of media diplomacy between the two countries.”

“After planting 35,000 mangrove saplings in Vietnam last year, we decided to actively participate in the establishment of this social enterprise because we felt the need to take action in environmental matters,” Head of SK Innovation PR Office Lim Soo-gil said. “The participation of the representative media agencies of the two countries will certainly give a much-needed boost to this project.”

SK Innovation plans to expand its efforts in generating social value in Vietnam by expanding the membership of the Vietnam Social Enterprise Alliance to regional government agencies, national universities, business partners, and NGOs.