Q&A about "Growing up with mountainous preschool students" project for the academic year 2023-2024

To enhance transparency and build trust with our sponsors, VSF has compiled the most frequently asked questions about the project's operations and implementation and provide our answers as the following. (Please see detailed answers in the caption of each image).

How long will the "Growing up with mountainous preschool students" project be implemented?

The project "Growing up with mountainous preschool students" is a long-term project of VSF with the aim of sponsoring school lunches and improving learning conditions for preschool students in disadvantaged areas. VSF will make efforts to mobilize resources to sponsor school meals (including lunch and afternoon snacks) for the children who are studying in the school within the project area.

What is the minimum amount I can donate for the project?

Sponsors can donate ANY AMOUNT or sponsor more than a child for 1.7 million VND per child per year.

For more information about how you can donate, please visit:
https://bit.ly/cachthucunghoCEKL

How will the 1.7 million VND per child budget be used?

This amount will be used to cover the cost of school meals (including lunch and afternoon snacks) for the children. Each meal costs 9,500 VND per child per day for the whole academic year (9 months). 

What are sponsor benefits for donating to this project?

Every quarter, sponsors will receive a project report and also a report about the child they are sponsoring.
At the end of the academic year, sponsors will receive a summary report of the project's activities and finance.
Sponsors will receive a thank-you card and confirmation of sponsorship from VSF.
Sponsors have the priority to visit the students once a year and participate in exchange activities with the childrens (self-funded).

When will I receive information about the child I sponsor?

After completing fundraising for the new academic year, by the end of August, VSF will match the children with sponsors and send information about the children to the sponsors via email.

Can I sponsor a child together with someone else?

Sponsors can combine with one or more other sponsors to fund one or more children.

Do sponsors have the option to choose the children they sponsor?

When sponsors make a donation or start their sponsorship, the children will be randomly assigned.
For sponsors who have donated in the previous academic year, they will have priority to continue sponsoring the same child in 2023 - 2024, unless they want to sponsor a different child.
When the child has graduated from the school site, VSF will match the sponsor with new children.
If sponsors want to be matched with a specific child, please contact VSF. 

Who will prepare the children's lunch, and how will the cost be covered?

The school sites will hire kitchen staff directly (who are usually local residents or parents of students) to prepare the meals. For schools with 50 or more students, the budget of hiring will be 2.6 million VND per month, which will be covered by the commune’s Department of Education and Training. For schools with fewer than 50 students, the budget will be 1.5 million VND per month, and the parents will contribute to the cost.
The schools are also responsible for supervising and ensuring food safety for the children's lunch.

How is the supervision, evaluation, and reporting of the project's results conducted?

VSF is responsible for monitoring and evaluating the project's results.
Every month, the schools will update the project's progress and send images and videos of the children's lunch to VSF.
Every quarter, the schools will report the project's implementation results to VSF, including changes in the children's weight, height, and health. Then, VSF will send a project report to the sponsors. Besides, each sponsor will receive a report about the child they are sponsoring.
The project is also monitored by local authorities.

What will be done with the remaining sponsorship funds after the end of the year?

If there is a remaining in the budget the end of the year, it will be used for:
Improving the learning conditions of students: purchasing additional educational materials, bookshelves, or improving the school's infrastructure, such as adding lights, fans, and nap blankets,...
Used for sponsoring school meals in the following academic year. 

Does my sponsored child receive information about their sponsors? Can I exchange letters/gifts with them?

All children will receive information about their sponsors. Every year, the children will be encouraged to express their gratitude to their sponsors through their own drawings or crafts.
Sponsors can exchange letters or send gifts to their sponsored children. However, all communications and exchanges will have to be sent through VSF.
In cases where sending gifts or letters is not convenient or not in the best interest of the child, VSF will coordinate with the sponsors to find a suitable solution.

Can an individual/organization/business sponsor meals for all children at a school site?

VSF highly encourages individuals/organizations/businesses to sponsor meals for all children at a school site. VSF can assess and implement the project in specific areas based on the needs and availability of the sponsors.
To ensure continuity and stability for the children's nutrition program, sponsors need to commit to supporting the program for a minimum of 3 years ahead (in case the sponsors agree to fund the entire school). 

When sponsoring the "Growing up with mountainous preschool students" project, am I eligible for tax deduction?

Section 1, Article 20, Chapter 2, Personal Income Tax Law issued by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on November 21, 2007, states:
"Charitable and humanitarian contributions shall be deducted from the income before calculating the tax on income from business, wages, and remunerations of individual taxpayers, including:
a) Contributions to organizations, establishments caring for and nurturing children with special difficult circumstances, disabled people, and the elderly with no one to rely on;
b) Contributions to charitable funds, humanitarian funds, and scholarship funds."
Therefore, the sponsors of the "Growing up with mountainous preschool students" project and other charity activities of VSF will be provided with a Confirmation of Sponsorship to proceed with tax settlement procedures. If Sponsors wish to obtain the Confirmation of Sponsorship, please contact us via email: lienhe@vitamvocviet.vn within 90 days from the sponsorship date and provide the following information: [Full name, ID/CCCD number (including date and place of issue), TNCN tax code, Address, Phone number, Sponsored amount].
Note: VSF only provides the Confirmation of Sponsorship with name on the ID/CCCD provided by sponsors. Sponsors are kindly requested to fill in the required information with the format [Full name_Sponsor's phone number_CEKL] to ensure the provision of the Confirmation of Sponsorship.
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"Growing up with mountainous preschool students" is one of VSF’s important and long-term projects that aims to sponsor school lunches and improve learning conditions for preschool students in disadvantaged areas. Currently, the project is implemented in Cao Bang and Son La. Over the past 3 years, the project has received continuous support and contributions from more than 263,000 individual sponsors , organizations, with a total sponsorship amount of over 1 BILLION VND.