• More than 1.5 million textbooks have been collected from the NTUC FairPrice Used Textbooks Project, an ongoing annual project for the past 25 years.
• Over 110,000 needy students have benefited from this annual community initiative

NTUC FairPrice is appealing for donations of primary and secondary school textbooks to help needy students for the FairPrice Used Textbooks Project.

From now till 30 November 2008, the public can make their donations at all NTUC FairPrice supermarkets and hypermarkets across the island.

Into its 26th year, the FairPrice Used Textbooks Project NTUC FairPrice aims to relieve the financial burden of needy families by providing free second-hand textbooks for lower-income families. The project also helps to promote a greener Singapore through recycling and encourage the value of thrift.

Mr Tan Kian Chew, Group CEO, NTUC FairPrice, said, “Amid the economic downturn, FairPrice is glad to play our part to rally the community to help needy students meet their textbook needs. We appeal to the public to donate their old textbooks generously. We hope that the FairPrice Used Textbook Project will continue to help needy families reduce school expenses.”

Since this community project was launched in 1983, the Used Textbooks Project has collected more than 1.5 million used textbooks and helped over 110,000 needy students save more than S$7 million in textbook expenses. Apart from providing financial relief for needy families, the project also promotes a greener environment by encouraging the community to reuse textbooks rather than discarding them after each school year. By engaging students as volunteers, the project also encourages volunteerism and promotes the spirit of community service.

For the first time this year, four schools have come on board as Community Partners of the FairPrice Used Textbooks Project. They are Yio Chu Kang Secondary School, Swiss Cottage Secondary School, Saint Anthony’s Canossian Secondary School and Zhang De Primary School. These schools will help to collect, sort, store and distribute the textbooks.

Students from Montfort Secondary School, Anderson Secondary School, Dunman High and Hwa Chong Institution have also volunteered time during their school holidays to assist in this community project.

Details of distribution of the books will be announced in early December. For enquiries on the project, the public can call the Used Textbooks Project hotline at 6424 7505 or email utp@fairprice.com.sg

In 2006, Global Compact, a United Nations organization which champions corporate social responsibility, named the FairPrice Used Textbooks Project as a Best Practice from Singapore for promoting environmental friendliness and human rights.