The KT&G Welfare Foundation has expanded its global social contribution efforts by dispatching a university volunteer team to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to help improve local educational environments and strengthen cultural exchange.
The foundation announced on July 20 that a total of 80 members of its overseas volunteer program, Sangsang Weaders, will carry out volunteer activities in the two Central Asian countries through July 26.
Launched in 2005, Sangsang Weaders is the KT&G Welfare Foundation's flagship international volunteer initiative. Over the past two decades, the program has dispatched approximately 2,000 university students through 60 volunteer missions to countries including Cambodia, Myanmar, Indonesia and Vietnam, supporting educational development and community improvement projects.
This year's volunteers have been assigned to Kokozek Public School in Almaty, Kazakhstan, and Nurafshan School No. 1 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
The team will organize educational programs for local elementary school students while also introducing Korean culture through traditional cultural activities and K-pop performances. The cultural exchange programs are designed to encourage mutual understanding and build friendships between Korean volunteers and local students.
In addition to educational activities, the volunteers will renovate school facilities by repainting classrooms and school buildings, refurbishing gymnasium floors and creating murals to provide students with a safer and more welcoming learning environment.
The foundation said the program is intended not only to improve physical infrastructure but also to create meaningful educational opportunities and foster long-term cultural connections with local communities.
Industry observers note that corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs have increasingly shifted from one-time donations to sustainable initiatives focused on education, community development and cultural exchange. Educational support, in particular, is viewed as an effective way to create long-term social value while contributing to the development of future generations.
The program is also expected to strengthen people-to-people ties between South Korea and Central Asia, where economic and cultural cooperation has continued to expand in recent years.
"The foundation will continue carrying out meaningful social contribution programs that provide practical support to communities in need," a KT&G Welfare Foundation official said. "We remain committed to expanding educational opportunities for future generations and creating sustainable social value through continued international volunteer activities."
