Toyota Holds Ceremony in China to Present Study Assistance Stipends

Tokyo — TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) announces that it held a Toyota Study Assistance Fund*1 stipend-presentation ceremony today at Southwest Jiaotong University in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China. The ceremony marked the third presentation of stipends from the fund.

The Toyota Study Assistance Fund was established jointly by TMC and the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation*2 in March 2006 to provide assistance to students in mid-western China who for financial reasons would otherwise have difficulty entering university or advancing their tertiary education.

At the ceremony were representatives from the 20 universities to which the fund is made available for the current fiscal year, officials from the Soong Ching Ling Foundation, representatives from TMC and its affiliates and other interested groups.

At today’s ceremony TMC also announced that as part of recovery efforts following the severe earthquake that struck Sichuan Province in May 2008, TMC will provide support for an additional total of 60 students from Southwest Jiaotong University and Chongqing University—both located close to the disaster area. Between 2008 and 2010, these students will receive financial assistance totaling 1.2 million yuan (approximately 18 million yen).

TMC and its affiliates around the world have long engaged in diverse social contribution activities with a focus on human resource development, environmental protection and traffic safety. Activities in the area of human resource development in China include the creation of the Technical Training Center of Toyota Jin Bei of China Automotive Industry in Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, and, in collaboration with Tsinghua University’s School of Public Policy, the establishment of a research center in Beijing. With respect to environmental protection, TMC engages in afforestation programs to combat desertification in Hebei Province and has established the Toyota Environmental Protection Aid Program for China’s Youth, which provides support for local environmental protection activities. Regarding traffic safety, TMC is conducting safe-driving events for the general public in collaboration with the Chinese Ministry of Public Security.

Through these initiatives, Toyota seeks to be a good corporate citizen in China and plans to continue making a positive contribution to Chinese society.

*1. The Toyota Study Assistance Fund targets one university in each of the 20 provincial, municipal and autonomous regions in mid-western China. The fund provides yearly stipends of 5,000 yuan (approx. 75,000 yen) to 10 first-year students per university over a four-year period. Selection is made by a committee of educators and experts on poverty issues that reviews the economic situation of applicants sitting for university entrance exams. TMC plans to offer financial assistance to a total of 1,000 university students through the fund over a five-year period from 2006 to 2010 (200 students per year). The Toyota Study Assistance Fund is valued at 20 million yuan (approx. 300 million yen).
Between 2008 and 2010, a total of 60 additional students from Southwest Jiaotong University and Chongqing University (10 students per university per year) will receive financial assistance totaling 1.2 million yuan (approximately 18 million yen) as part of recovery efforts following the Great Sichuan Earthquake.

*2. The China Soong Ching Ling Foundation, one of China’s oldest community service organizations, was established in May 1982 in memory of Soong Ching Ling, the late honorary president of the People’s Republic of China. The Foundation has significant domestic and international influence and engages in the promotion of a wide range of independent activities, in areas that include exchanges between Taiwan and China, international exchanges, education of the needy, spreading scientific knowledge, children’s culture and entertainment, sporting activities and assistance to underprivileged children.