Football matches under the Bia Saigon Cup Youth Football Tournament 2023 taking place in Thai Binh

In addition to this, they announced their cooperation programmes for 2023, marking a successful milestone in their three-year strategic partnership from 2022 to 2024.

The Central Committee of Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union (HCYU) and SABECO have jointly implemented major projects since 2022, including 34 youth projects and several community sports.

To create a healthy playground, strengthen exchanges, promote physical activities and sports, improve health among young people on the occasion of handing over 10 community sports fields, HCYU cooperates with SABECO to organise the Youth Friendly Football Tournament Saigon Beer Cup in 2023.

Ngo Van Cuong, Secretary of the Central Committee of the HCYU, said the initiative and close collaboration between HCYU and SABECO would create positive effects in youth union members, young people and society.

"We hope that there will be meaningful programmes and activities in the future to promote the strengths of both sides, towards common goals for the sustainable development of Vietnam,” Cuong said.

SABECO and HCYU awarding the champions

Bennett Neo, general director of SABECO said the initiatives would set to enhance the socio-infrastructure of rural areas and bring values to surrounding communities, in line with our Vietnam National Strategy of Green Growth and National target for New-Style Rural Area development.

"I would like to personally thank everyone who is involved with these projects for their support and commitment, including the local authorities for your facilitation to make these projects happen. Recognising the significant impact of these projects, together with the HCYU we are delighted to announce the extension of these initiatives into Phase 2," he said.

"We recognise this as our commitment and duty as a leading Vietnamese company, as part of our sustainable development strategy focusing on four key pillars: Consumption, Conservation, Country and Culture, with the aim to bring out the best of Vietnam. We look forward to working hand-in-hand with HCYU to contribute to the socioeconomic development of Vietnam."

In May 2022, recognising the importance of community development, HCYU and SABECO signed a strategic three-year cooperation agreement, focusing on national development activities, cultural preservation, healthy lifestyle advocacy, and sustainable development.

Over the past 18 months, the partnership between HCYU and SABECO has successfully implemented more than nine projects, varying in scales and impact across the nation. Notably, the "Light Up the Rural" and "Fostering Sports" projects have emerged as pivotal initiatives laying a solid foundation for the forthcoming second phase.

The next stage will witness greater diversity and scale, aiming to invite contributions from local partners and communities in each province to join hands. This will generate bigger positive impacts and value on the community, which will further augment Vietnam’s socioeconomic development.

Launching the new road in Thai Binh province developed by Sabeco and HCYU

Light up the rural

The 'Light Up The Rural' project, initiated in July 2022, seeks to bolster Vietnam’s green growth target, as well support the national programme on new-style rural area development.

During its first phase, the project successfully installed 34 km of solar-powered street lights, significantly enhancing the socioeconomic infrastructure of rural areas across 34 provinces. Over 210,000 households benefited from improved safety and livelihoods.

Looking ahead, the project aims to implement an additional 39 km of solar-powered street lights across 29 provinces. This includes solar-powered street lights to illuminate community sports playgrounds in 10 provinces as part of the 'Fostering Sports' initiative.

To drive environmental awareness, HCYU and SABECO will also launch a contest encouraging creative solution ideas on how to use energy wisely, safely, and effectively among the youth community nationwide. The most outstanding ideas will be considered for implementation in future environmental projects in 2024.

Handing over ceremony of 34 works under the "Light Up the Rural" programme

Fostering sports

The ‘Fostering Sports’ project aims to cultivate sportsmanship and promote healthy lifestyles. The project commits to upgrading 30 community sports playgrounds across 30 provinces from 2022 to 2024. As of August 2023,the project has already completed 10 playgrounds.

As part of completion achieved in 2022, HCYU and Bia Saigon have also organised the Bia Saigon Cup Youth Football Tournament 2023 with the participation of 10 football teams from 10 provinces.

Developing young entrepreneurs

The partnership between HCYU and SABECO also focuses on empowering and supporting young entrepreneurs in rural areas through coaching and mentoring programmes. The Luong Dinh Cua Award, a prestigious award initiated by HCYU since 2006 to honour talented young individuals excelling in doing business in rural areas, now enjoys SABECO’s support.

In 2023, SABECO will continue a series of coaching and mentoring programmes with HCYU in Can Tho city, Ha Nam, and Khanh Hoa provinces, imparting practical knowledge about entrepreneurship and digital transformation to more than 300 young talents. By doing so, the partnership aims to enhance their competitiveness and contribution to local economic development. These programmes also provide valuable networking opportunities for new startups to explore cooperation prospects and growth possibilities.