Suntory Group and Suntory PepsiCo bold actions to preserve water resources by the program "Mizuiku - I love clean water" program in Vietnam in its 9^th year.

On March 20, 2023, at Kim Dong Primary School in Hanoi, Suntory Group, Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam Beverage (Suntory PepsiCo) and the Ministry of Education and Training, in collaboration with the Central Council of Ho Chi Minh Young Pioneer Organization (HYPO) hosted the opening ceremony of the "Mizuiku - I love clean water" program. 

Based on "Sustainable Water Philosophy", Suntory Group is constantly committed to creating activities that enhance water resource conservation. Suntory Group has been operating the Mizuiku program which is an educational initiative to help raising awareness of water protection in Japan since 2004. As a result of the positive response the program received from the Japanese along with the desire to extend it to other countries where the group operates, Vietnam was officially chosen by Suntory in 2015 to be the first country outside Japan to deploy the "Mizuiku - I love clean water" program.

In addition to the sustainaibility development goals and commitment to support the community where Suntory PepsiCo does business, "Mizuiku - I love clean water" program is a key initiative in the area of "Preservation of water resources" which is also the sixth goal among seventeen sustainability development goal of the United Nations. The program highlights Suntory and Suntory PepsiCo's bold action and dedication to water resources conservation and sustainable development in Vietnam. During its 8-year journey in Vietnam, "Mizuiku - I love clean water" program has brought an impressive accomplishments and left a long-term impact on the community of more than 2.6 million beneficiaries of the program. With the help of 3,924 teachers and volunteers nationwide, more than 210,000 pupils took part in 3,728 Mizuiku classes educated about saving and conserving clean water sources.

Mr. Masaaki Fujiwara, Chief Sustainability Officer, said: “We are delighted to see positive benefits that “Mizuiku – I love clean water” program has brought to the community in Vietnam. This is the motivation for us to extend the program to other countries worldwide. In 2022, we were so proud when the Vietnam-based Mizuiku program was honored to be recognized as a commemoration program on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Japan and Vietnam. Accordingly, the program not only has positive social effects but also serves as a diplomatic bridge between the two nations. I am hopeful that starting from 2023, with the partnership model with the Ministry of Education and Training in the next three years, the program will be elevated to a new level, bring more impressive results, and make more positive contributions for Vietnam where Suntory Group is doing business.” 

"Growing for Good" is the vision that guides all business and manufacturing activities of Suntory Group and Suntory PepsiCo. Understanding that knowledge and skills about conserving the environment and water resources should be widely shared, especially with school-age children, Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam marked a new milestone for the program when it officially signed a comprehensive cooperation agreement with the Ministry of Education and Training in December 2022. According to this new orientation and the cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Training and the Central Council of HYPO, starting from 2023, the program will gradually broaden its scope of education nationwide. It will focus on implementing useful experiential activities, contribute to spreading awareness, and encourage responsible actions in saving and protecting clean water resources to pupils who are our future generation.

Attending at the event, Deputy Minister of Education and Training, Dr. Ngo Thi Minh recognized and appreciated the effect of the program "Mizuiku - I love clean water" in the past. With positive results achieved, the program contributes to raising awareness for primary school students about water conservation, school health and environmental sanitation. The Ministry of Education and Training will continue to create conditions for the effective implementation of the program to achieve the expected goals.

The “Mizuiku – I love clean water” program highlights Suntory and Suntory PepsiCo’s bold action and dedication to water resources protection and sustainable development in Vietnam. With a new development orientation in the period of 2023-2025, the Ministry of Education and Training serving as the co-chair, the Central Council of HYPO and other partners serving as co-organizers,  "Mizuiku - I love clean water" program is expected to become a typical model for cooperation agreement and benefit the Vietnamese social community and young generation in numerous ways. The program will be a strategic connection between the resources in sustainable development of Suntory PepsiCo and Suntory Group with relevant ministries, socio-political organizations, and community-minded businesses, media agencies as well as individuals interested in and willing to contribute to the program.”

Accordingly, under the direction of the Ministry of Education and Training as the program’s co-chair, in 2023, "Mizuiku - I love clean water" program will gradually broaden its scope through the appraisal and approval of the program's materials and making them to be the official materials in the extracurricular curriculum of all primary schools countrywide; increasing the education implementation through training courses for more than 5,000 teachers at 300 schools and organizing 6,000 classes for about 210,000 pupils in grades 3 and 6 cities and provinces in cluding  in Lang Son, Hanoi, Da Nang, Dak Nong, Ho Chi Minh City and Vinh Long; supporting 20 clean water projects to enhance school sanitation quality in the locality.

Especially, within the framework of cooperation activities with the Central Council of HYPO, the program also pays special attention to developing experiential educational content for pupils when a cooperation agreement with the Forest Protection Department  under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development was first signed. It organizes extracurricular activities to experience forests and builds environmental information corners in national parks, contributes to spread awareness and affirms the role of forest resources conservation - clean water preservation for Vietnamese children.