Safety first as carmaker loans students bikes

But now the lives of the five family members may no longer be at risk on the road from the overloaded machines – thanks to a project launched by Mitsubishi Motors Thailand.
Entitled “100 years of Mitsubishi Automobiles: riding 100 bicycles to schools”, the project is making available 100 bicycles for underprivileged students, aged under 14, in Phang Nga. 
The aim is to promote safety as well as increase learning opportunities among Thai youth.
“I’m glad to get this bicycle so my siblings and I do not need to ride on the same motorbike with my mum. I can carry one of my siblings to school myself,” 11-year-old Artitaya, who is in Prathom 5, said with a smile.
Iyana Samart, a Prathom 5 student at Ban Kok Yang School, Takua Pa district, had earlier set about collecting money to buy her own bicycle, but now she has been selected by her school to receive a bike from the project due to her excellent score. 
“I’m very happy because I can ride it to school by myself. I will also be able to exercise by riding after school,” 11-year-old Iyana – who always finishes in second place in her class with a GPA 3.83 – said.
To mark the 100th anniversary next year of the first car produced under the Mitsubishi brand, as well as to express its intention to continue supporting Thai society, the firm has initiated the CSR project to carry on its commitment along with the continuous growth of the Mitsubishi Motors’ CSR plan.The project aims to offer better educational opportunities for the students in need across the country, starting with Phang Nga.
“We want Thai young people to have as much access to education as possible, even if they live in remote or under-served areas. We want to improve the quality of life of Thai youth, creating good futures for them, and playing a part in building a quality society for the good of the nation,” Koji Nakahara, executive vice president-Domestic Sales Unit of Mitsubishi Motors Thailand Co, said during the launch last week.
“We believe education is a fundamental for development and growth of the nation, and will help them to support themselves and their families in the future,” said Nakahara.
He said the firm not only offered the students a tool to commute between home and school but also wanted to remind them how important it is to ride in safety.
“This is why we are giving to these students bicycles with taillights and bicycle pumps. With these, they will be able to commute safely between home and school,” said Nakahara.
Mitsubishi Motors was determined to share happiness with Thai society to mark this 2016 year-end, he said.
Nakahara said the company hoped all the children who received these bikes would pay more attention to riding with safety to create the traffic safety they aimed for.
The CSR activity was in line with the company’s corporate principles in a 4-pillar philosophy, he said.
They are: supporting the education of the next generation to create a prosperous future while contributing to traffic safety education and the spread of safe driving; to strive towards a zero-accident society; to the preservation of its precious global environment; and to the revitalisation and development of regional communities.
Anong Suparavong, corporate general-manager Office of Marketing of Mitsubishi Motors Thailand, said next year the firm planned to hand out more than 1,000 bicycles to students in 12 provinces. The company would hold mass cycling events under the “Nation Bike Thailand” activity. 
The activity will be hosted by Nation TV and Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) and others.
Students will be selected by provinces and provincial education officers to receive the bikes, based on their school records and the distance from their home to school in order that they would get most benefit from the bikes.
Students must give the bicycles back to school when they finish fundamental education so their junior students can continue to use them, Anong said.