- FairPrice’s 40th edition of Share-A-Textbook project collected over 725,000 textbooks donated from the community and saw a record number of 2,700 volunteers involved in collecting, sorting and distributing textbooks over the past six weeks.
- About 25,000 underprivileged students between seven to 16 years old have been invited to collect textbooks from 10 December 2022 before access is given to the public from 11 to 12 December 2022.
- The Food, Innovation and Technology – ‘FIT’ Hackathon, held in conjunction with the project, saw about 55 applications and the top 10 teams presenting their proposals to promote sustainability to a panel of industry experts after two days of mentorship
Singapore, 10 December 2022 – NTUC FairPrice (FairPrice) today launched the distribution drive for its signature community sharing initiative, FairPrice Share-A-Textbook Project. About 25,000 students from low-income families between seven to 16 years old, selected by social service organisations and Community Development Councils, were given priority to collect the pre-loved textbooks today before access is given to the general public from 11 to 12 December 2022.
Mr Vipul Chawla, Group CEO of FairPrice Group, said, “It has been a privilege for FairPrice to work closely with the various schools, community partners and volunteers for this signature project and we are humbled by the community’s continued support. Through this collective effort, we are better able to support the less fortunate, contribute towards a sustainable environment and cultivate a spirit of sharing in our society.”
This year, the Share-A-Textbook Project celebrates its 40th year with over 725,000 textbooks collected at all FairPrice stores islandwide. This equates to approximately 8700 trees saved.[1] In addition, the project attracted the highest number of volunteers to-date – over 2,700 volunteers – from community partners and schools, along with FairPrice Group staff and members of the public who have signed up to assist in collecting, sorting and organising textbooks. The volunteers have contributed to over 16,200 man-hours to the project.
Strict safety measures have been implemented to ensure the safety of the public and volunteers amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Beneficiaries and members of the public are required to pre-book their preferred time slots prior to turning up to collect the books. A total of 10 hourly collection time slots are available each day, and each booking limits a total of two pax for collection of textbooks.
The textbook distribution drive is open to the public between 9am to 7pm from 11 to 12 December 2022 at Arena @ Our Tampines Hub, 1 Tampines Walk. More information regarding the Share-A-Textbook Project can be found here: https://www.fairpricegroup.com.sg/do-good/faqs/#share-a-textbook
Note: Public collection time slots have since been fully subscribed due to overwhelming response. Subsequent requests will be reviewed on a case by case basis to better assist the needs of the community. The public may email [email protected] to submit their requests for available slots.
The second instalment of FIT Hackathon
FairPrice today also held its second edition of the Food-Innovation-Technology (FIT) Hackathon, where the top 10 teams presented their proposals for a more sustainable future to a panel of industry experts and were awarded with cash prizes totalling S$20,500. The ‘FIT’ Hackathon was held in conjunction with the FairPrice Share-A-Textbook distribution drive. The finale event was graced by Mr Masagos Zulkifli, Minister for Social and Family Development, Second Minister for Health & Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs, Advisor to Tampines GROs.
The ‘FIT’ Hackathon aims to encourage youths in making a positive impact on our environment as well as promoting sustainable living. About 55 applications were received and the top 10 teams were invited to develop their proposals with guidance from a panel of industry experts over two days. The teams comprised students from secondary schools (30%) and tertiary school (70%), of which eight teams explored innovative solutions that tackle issues around sustainability and reducing waste, while the remaining two teams focused on retail innovation. The top three teams received cash prizes of $10,000, $5,000 and $2,000 respectively while the remaining seven teams received $500 each. More information on the ‘FIT’ Hackathon can be found via this link: www.fpgfithack.com.sg.
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[1] From Conservatree: http://conservatree.org/learn/EnviroIssues/TreeStats.shtml 1 ream of paper (500 sheets) is 6% of a tree; 5 textbooks is approx. 1 ream; hence 83.33 textbooks equates to 1 tree and 8700 trees make up 725,000 textbooks.