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The report also shows that the Burmese and the Thai people, who have 87% of adult donations, mostly believe in Theravada Buddhism, which has a long tradition of donating to Buddhist monks. Therefore donation is a common practice in their societies. However, the report also draws comparison between the generosity of the Burmese and their persecution against the Rohingya people, a minority Muslim group in Myanmar.
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The Charity Aid Foundation (CAF) based in the UK has announced the rankings of the World Giving Index and Myanmar ranks first among 144 countries. Taiwan ranks 35, China ranks 143 and Burundi places last.
According to CAF’s report, Myanmar, the US and New Zealand are the top three countries in the World Giving Index 2015. The report shows that participation in donating money and helping strangers has risen this year, while volunteering has seen a small downturn. It is also the first time in six years that men have appeared to be more likely to donate money than women.
The report also shows that only five G20 countries are in this year’s top 20, regardless of their highly developed economies. It indicates that economic prosperity does not automatically lead to a rise in generosity.
In August this year, Myanmar suffered from floods due to days of heavy rain. During this period, all the Burmese, from individuals and schools to organizations and companies, were mobilized and together raised money for the flood victims. This shows the ubiquitous generosity that lies in Myanmar’s culture and society, complementing the government’s deficiency in helping the victims.
CNA reports, according to a CAF survey, more and more people taking part in philanthropy. In 2014, there were about 1.4 billion people, or 31.5% of adults, worldwide that donated money to help others, higher than the 28.3% in 2013. CAF Chief Executive John Low says in a statement that even in these hard times of global economic uncertainty, people are still enthusiastic to show their generosity, which is really encouraging.
The report also shows that the Burmese and the Thai people, who have 87% of adult donations, mostly believe in Theravada Buddhism, which has a long tradition of donating to Buddhist monks. Therefore donation is a common practice in their societies.
However, the report also draws comparison between the generosity of the Burmese and their persecution against the Rohingya people, a minority Muslim group in Myanmar.
Apple Daily reports that the report divides generosity into three types, donating, volunteering and helping strangers. The results show that in every ten Burmese people, nine of them donate money and five of them do volunteer work.
Translated by Vic Chiang
Edited by Olivia Yang
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