KUALA LUMPUR, July 9 (Bernama) -- Citi Volunteers in Kuala Lumpur and Penang raised over RM 102,000  for the Paralympic Movement in Malaysia in support of the training and development of our Malaysian para-athletes in Boccia, Para Archery, Wheelchair Rugby and Para Badminton. Citi Malaysia partnered with the Paralympic Council of Malaysia to host Citi’s 14^th Global Community Day held on 22 June and helped boost the Tambah Emas public fund raising campaign for the Malaysian Paralympians training for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games.
 
Citi is the Global International Partner for the International Paralympic Committee and supports the country Paralympic councils in 18 key markets. In Malaysia, Citi has sponsored Malaysian Paralympians - sprinter, Mohamad Ridzuan Mohamad Puzi and swimmer, Muhammad Nur Syaiful Zulkafli. Both Mohamad Ridzuan and Muhammad Nur Syaiful are world class para athletes and have done Malaysia proud by bringing home gold medals from previous Paralympic games.
 
Deputy Minister of Women, Family and Community Development Hannah Yeoh who was present to launch the Day’s program said “It has become increasingly difficult for NGOs to do fund raising today, so every effort like today helps. I hope with the support given by corporate sectors like Citi Malaysia, the disabled are able to get more resources to move forward. Under the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development alone, we have a large group of NGOs covering all needs and groups applying for grants. We only have RM22 million in total to cover all groups. With the help from corporate sectors it helps government carry that load.”
 
“Moving forward all of us are able to carry this load together. Citi Malaysia employees are the right people with the right resources and talent to help us carry forward. To the athletes, you now have a duty to show to the rest of the community that with the right attitude and family support, you can definitely bring home the gold,” she added.
 
Held at the Malaysian Paralympic Sports Excellence Centre in Kampung Pandan, the 14th Citi Global Community Day saw Citi Volunteers including Paralympic athletes participate in over seven paralympic events including wheelchair basketball, para badminton, para archery, boccia, goalball, tandem cycling and table tennis. The opening event kicked off with a swimming showcase by Paralympian Muhammad Nur Syaiful Zulkifli and the Malaysian para swimmers.
 
Citi Malaysia Chief Executive Officer Lee Lung Nien said, “Citi is proud to partner with the Paralympic Council of Malaysia this year for our annual community event. Global Community Day is an opportunity for our Citi employees to step away from their desks and hit pause on their busy lives and remember their responsibility as well as their commitment to working together to tackle many of the challenges in community through volunteerism.”
 
“We know we have the greatest impact when we come together to accomplish a shared goal one of enabling growth and economic progress for the communities we serve daily. This goal embodies and brings our Mission and Value Proposition to life- it is what we do across Citi. It is who we are,” Citi CEO Lee Lung Nien added.
 
Employees and their families together with the Malaysian para athletes spent the morning participating in friendly competition giving Citi Volunteers the opportunity to experience the challenges of para sports and show their appreciation to the Paralympians for their determination and sporting excellence in the global arena.
 
Deputy President of the Paralympic Council of Malaysia John Ng said, “We are pleased that Citi has chosen to celebrate the Global Community Day with the Paralympic Council of Malaysia to create awareness about disabled sports among the community, to support corporate social responsibility initiatives and to advance the cause of the Paralympic Movement in Malaysia including supporting the Projek Tambah Emas.”
 
“This is a good sign for the recognition of the para sports movement in the country. We hope more corporate organizations will follow Citi’s lead to assist in the development and recognition of para sports in our beloved nation. Such initiatives speak well about the involvement of the community to promote the cause for the OKU (Orang Kurang Upaya @ Disabled) community to be inclusive in the mainstream development of sports in the country” he added.
 
Citi’s Global Community Day is an annual event for Citi around the world which showcases Citi’s spirit of enabling growth and economic progress as well as to demonstrate the responsibility Citi takes as a company to work together to tackle the challenges that communities face. Each year, Citi employees, friends and family come out in force across the world to help create impact and give back to the communities where they live and work. This year, more than 43,000 volunteers participated in over 300 service projects across 80 cities in Asia Pacific. Globally, the Community Day saw more than 110,000 Citi Volunteers in over 400 cities across 90 countries and territories participating in over 1,500 service projects.
 
Since the inaugural Global Community Day in 2006, Citi volunteers have contributed over 4 million hours of service to Global Community Day projects in hundreds of cities. This year, we continue to track how projects are helping to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The featured activities below show how this year’s projects are contributing to select SDGs, including: Zero Hunger (SDG 2); Good Health and Well-Being (SDG 3); Quality Education (SDG 4); Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG 8); Sustainable Cities and Communities (SDG 11); and Climate Action (SDG 13).
 
Please join the Global Community Day conversation on social media using the hashtag #CitiVolunteers. To learn more about Citi’s citizenship efforts and how we take action to effect positive and meaningful change in our communities, visit https://www.citi.com/citizenship.
 
 About Citi
Citi, the leading global bank, has approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 160 countries and jurisdictions. Citi provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction services, and wealth management.
 
Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com | Twitter: @Citi | YouTube: www.youtube.com/citi | Blog: http://new.citi.com | Facebook: www.facebook.com/citi | LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/citi
 
Source: Mad Hat PR PLT

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Name: Sara Yasmine Mohamed
Media Relations
Citi Malaysia
Tel: 6012 216 0022
Email: Sara.yasmine.mohamed@citi.com 

--BERNAMA