Cross-Sector Endeavour Continues to Cultivate Corporate Social Responsibility

HONG KONG, CHINA - MediaOutReach - 6 July 2020 - CitigroupInc. (NYSE: C) - The Citi-HKCSS Community Intern Program (CIP) is celebratingits 10^th year of providing internship opportunities for localuniversity business students at local non-profit organizations (NGOs). Sinceits launch in 2010, nearly 700 interns have been nurtured through the program.

Co-organizedby Citi and the Hong Kong Council of Social Service (HKCSS), Citi-HKCSSCommunity Intern Program is a first-of-its-kind cross-sector collaborationbetween academia, business and the NGO sector. Sponsored by Citi, the programaims to foster an exchange of knowledge, ideas and expertise between HongKong's emerging business leaders and local non-profit organizations, through anarray of activities ranging from marketing, event management and fundraising today-to-day operations for NGOs. Most importantly, the program enhances theconcept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for the participating businessuniversity students in Hong Kong.

Mr.Wayne Fong, Head of Corporate Affairs, Citi Hong Kong, said, "This year marksthe 10^th year of our collaborative effort with HKCSS. We aredelighted to have forged cross-sector partnerships for mutual learning andcontribution between local university business students and local non-profitorganizations. Over previous years, the program has served as a stage and aclassroom for resourceful young people to excel and improve their expertise andideas, while offering local NGOs more innovative solutions to anticipatingchallenges and a chance to build awareness in the sector. Citi has a firmcommitment to Corporate Social Responsibility and strives to enable theeconomic growth and progress of different stakeholders in the Hong Kong community.We hope our future business leaders will carry with them a broadenedunderstanding of community needs and continue to dedicate themselves to the bettermentof society in their future careers."

Dr.John Fung, Business Director, The Hong Kong Council of Social Service said, "Withoutthe strong and continuous support from Citi, this program would not have comeinto its 10^th year. Cross-sector partnerships and multiplebeneficiary designs are niches of the program. NGOs have got solid manpower and innovativemarketing support to improve their works. Local university business studentsare able to get in touch with different underserved groups and gain in-depthunderstanding of the social situation. This internship program offers comprehensiveexperiential learning opportunities to enhance the future skills of the youth, preparingthem to be inclusive leaders with a social mindset. Today, I am very happy to havetwo alumni, who graduated in 2010 and 2015, here to share their career successeswith attribution to early social exposure through the program. "

Thisyear, 80 business students will do internships at 40 local NGOs during July andAugust. The CIP interns will provide strategic and operational assistance totheir assigned NGOs in areas including but not limited to network building,brand-building, fundraising, social enterprise business, operations andcommunity service support. To enhance their understanding and social mindset, theinterns will receive 20 hours of comprehensive coaching on social servicedevelopment in Hong Kong, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) andcross-sector collaborations prior to the start of their internships. Some participatingnon-profit organizations provide services to a wide range of stakeholders,including low-income groups, the elderly, students with special needs, andpersons with disabilities, while others promote nature conservation.

Photos:

1. (first row second and third from left) Mr. Wayne Fong, Head of Corporate Affairs, Citi Hong Kong and Dr. John Fung, Business Director of the Hong Kong Council of Social Service (HKCSS) pictured with the 80 interns at the induction event for the Citi-HKCSS Community Intern Program 2020.
2. 30 interns joined a workshop to learn the concepts of "Upcycling" and "Making by Doing" at a social innovation project called UpCycling Plus located at Hung Shui Kiu, Tuen Mun.

About Citi

Citi,the leading global bank, has approximately 200 million customer accounts anddoes business in more than 160 countries and jurisdictions. Citi providesconsumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range offinancial products and services, including consumer banking and credit,corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction services,and wealth management.

Additionalinformation may be found at www.citigroup.com | Twitter: @Citi | YouTube: www.youtube.com/citi| Blog: https://new.citi.com| Facebook: www.facebook.com/citi| LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/citi

About HKCSS

TheHKCSS is an umbrella organisation of 480 agency members that provide over 90%of the social welfare services in Hong Kong. HKCSS launched the Caring CompanyScheme to build a cohesive society by promoting strategic partnership amongbusiness and social service partners and inspiring corporate socialresponsibility through caring for the community, employees and the environment.HKCSS puts much effort into building capacity for social enterprises throughthe Social Enterprise Business Centre (SEBC) to advance social entrepreneurshipand mobilize social innovation.

Additional information may be found at www.hkcss.org.hk| Facebook: www.facebook.com/hkcssfans