BMW will award 500 outstanding Chinese college students in poor economic conditions in five years, with a total fund of 2.5 million yuan (around 312,500 U.S. dollars).

BMW and the Soong Ching-ling Foundation, a social welfare organization named after the late Chinese leader Soong Ching-ling, Monday signed an agreement on the establishment of the foundation.

Yu Guilin, vice-chairman of the Soong Ching-ling Foundation, said the awarded students will be selected from the engineering-related departments of 10 prestigious Chinese universities. "We are expecting young students with innovative spirit and research achievements."

"This move will also encourage and attract more foreign business firms to participate in the construction of Chinese educational, cultural, scientific and technological sectors," Yu said.

Echoing Yu's remarks, Dr. Chrind Stark, CEO of the China Branch of BMW, said BMW saw a great potential market in China in recent years. To support China on personnel cultivating is not only conducive to Chinese economic and social development, but also helpful for BMW to better emerge into the Chinese society.

According to Stark, BMW has initially decided the first group of 100 Chinese university students to be awarded this year.

Since its founding in 2003, the Soong Ching-ling Foundation has seen a rapid increase of donation exceeding 60 million yuan (7.5 million U.S. dollars) for poor university students.

Source: Xinhua