Kenan Foundation Asia

Kenan Foundation Asia (formerly Kenan Institute Asia, K.I.Asia) is a non-profit organization that works to initiate education reforms, develop professional skills, and assist marginalized populations at community, organization, and individual levels in Thailand and the Greater Mekong region (Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, and China’s Yunnan province and Vietnam). Recognizing the need to provide knowledge and training for social and economic development, Kenan creates and delivers services with its partners to implement programs with impact-focused actions.

Founded in 1996, Kenan organizes programs in four main areas: education, small business, health, and community.

History

Evolving from a project funded by United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Kenan was founded in 1996 with an endowment provided by USAID, the Thai government, the William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust, and the Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise. With former Prime Minister Anand Panyarachun serving as the founding chairman, Kenan initially focused on developing partnerships between the U.S. and Thai organizations. Kenan dealt with the 1997 Asian financial crisis through the American Corporations for Thailand (ACT) program, chaired by the former prime minister of Thailand and the then-current Kenan chairman, Anand Panyarachun, and Henry Kissinger, former U.S. Secretary of State. The program worked with U.S. companies in Thailand to support human resource development and retrain those left unemployed by the crisis.

In 1999, the U.S. government provided Kenan with a cost-shared grant for a program of economic recovery and reform for Thailand called Accelerating Economic Recovery in Asia (AERA). As part of the Thailand Competitiveness Initiative, the program had a specific focus on the development of cluster competitiveness. The project had three objectives: 1) creating and saving jobs, 2) improving the targeting and coverage of safety nets, and 3) improving economic governance. When the 2004 tsunami devastated the coast of southern Thailand, Kenan implemented the Tsunami Recovery Action Initiative (TRAI), with core funding provided by the William R. Kenan Charitable Trust and the Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise, along with a variety of smaller donors.

Today, Kenan employs over 50 full-time staff at offices in Bangkok, Thailand, and Hanoi, Vietnam. Kenan is currently partnering with various organizations, including the Ministry of Education Thailand, the Ministry of Science and Technology Thailand, USAID, the US Department of State, Boeing, Citi Foundation, Chevron, and Coca-Cola.

Program Areas

Kenan works with corporations, governments, state-owned enterprises, and multilateral organizations to implement projects in four main areas.

Education

Kenan believes that it is crucial for youths to obtain critical thinking skills, including the ability to solve complex problems through rigorous application of science, technology, engineering, and math knowledge (STEM education). To support youths in developing 21st century skills and the confidence to pursue technical or specialized jobs, it is essential to provide them with the opportunities to acquire skills and cultivate a creative and critical mindset. Kenan’s education programs are also aimed at building the skills of teachers and principals.

Building Employability Through Technology and Entrepreneurship Resources

Kenan partnered with the Thai Department of Skill Development (DSD) and Microsoft to implement the Building Employability Through Technology and Entrepreneurship Resources project, which provided general information communication technology (ICT) training and ICT for entrepreneurship training for the unemployed and at-risk workers, as well as for small SME operators.

Chevron Enjoy Science

The Chevron Enjoy Science project is a comprehensive five-year, public-private partnership designed to strengthen Thailand’s competitiveness and innovation by improving technical vocational education and training (TVET) and STEM education. Through Enjoy Science, the first technical vocational hub was opened in Thailand, and a total of 12 STEM hubs were launched nationwide.

Boeing Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL)

Kenan has been implementing the Boeing Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) project in Thailand for nearly 10 years. It is a project which advances a STEM education model which was expanded to Vietnam in 2018. The project emphasizes building the capacity of teachers to deliver integrated, technology-aided STEM lessons using project-based learning, so as to improve learning outcomes and students’ engagement in the classroom.

Small Business

With the aim to help small businesses cope with the challenges of globalization, digitization, and the resultant increase in competition, Kenan provides programs that focus on the development of business skills and encourages business owners and entrepreneurs to enter their products and services into the global market.

Boost with Facebook: An Inclusive Digital Capacity Building Program for Thai MSMEs

The project aimed to upskill enterprises by improving the digital skills of the country’s 3 million MSMEs and increasing the competitiveness of Thai entrepreneurs. In addition, the project helped marginalized groups such as rural communities, the LGBTQI community, people with disabilities, minority ethnic groups, and women, to access quality work and financial security.

Sustainable Business with Coca-Cola for Female Sugarcane Growers

With the goal of improving the lives of women in rural communities, Kenan partnered with Coca-Cola to implement the Sustainable Business with Coca-Cola project to build capacity of female sugarcane growers. The project was part of Coca-Cola’s global 5by20 initiative aimed to empower 5 million women across the company’s value chain by 2020. The project provided financial literacy and entrepreneurship training to female sugarcane farmers in Phetchabun and Uthai Thani. The training and mentoring focused on financial management to help women save more and create long-term financial plans. This is to provide a guide for participants to overcome economic setbacks without relying on risky loans. Through the project, Coca-Cola and Kenan worked with 1,423 female sugarcane farmers through financial literacy and entrepreneurship training. Kenan also conducted train-the-trainer workshops for 29 community engagement staff with the aim to help local communities.

New Entrepreneurs Creation

To help aspiring and early-stage entrepreneurs acquire the fundamental knowledge and skills needed to open and grow a business, Kenan implemented the New Entrepreneurs Creation project for 11 consecutive years, beginning in 2006. Through the project, Kenan trained entrepreneurs to develop sound business plans and obtain the required finance to take the next step to improve their businesses. More than 1,150 new and aspiring entrepreneurs participated in Kenan’s NEC training over the course of the project.

Health

The objectives of Kenan’s health programs are to increase health literacy and enable individuals to lead healthier lives and reduce the incidence of non-communicable diseases.

Pfizer Healthy Aging Society

Kenan and Pfizer Thailand Foundation implemented the Pfizer Healthy Aging Society project to establish a preventative healthcare model for pre-seniors and seniors. Non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes, obesity, and hypertension, are particularly prevalent among Thai seniors. One of the aims of the project is to mitigate the consequences of an aging society on the population’s health, individual wellbeing, and the broader economy. The project trained 40 change agents who then implemented their own medium-sized development projects to help their communities.

Control and Prevention of Malaria

Kenan contributed to a Thai malaria control program, supported by the World Health Organization (WHO), which monitored malaria drug resistance in six sentinel sites since the early 1980s. In 2000, funding provided by USAID, the program was expanded through Kenan to include three additional sites, which played a part in identifying and controlling drug resistant malaria along the Thai-Cambodian border. The project established a network for sentinel surveillance of drug resistance and a systematic process for evidence-based policy changes in treatment regimens to respond to emerging resistance to anti-malarial drugs.

Community

Kenan works to build sustainable communities, assist in addressing challenges they face, and advocate for the needs of local people. The following community programs aim to create change agents in conflict-affected communities and provide financial literacy skills to low-income individuals. The programs also connect workers, industrial managers, and government officials to ensure that the benefits of economic growth reach the entire community.

Youth to Work

With the aim to break the cycle of poverty and enable women and their children to have a better future, the project provided training for 21^st century and employability skills of young single mothers, with the objective to help them secure employment, increase their income, and open up more career opportunities. Youth to Work also provided training in soft skills, as well as raised awareness of effective anti-sexual harassment strategies. The project worked with 125 single mothers from low-income households in the Bangkok area.

Government Savings Bank Financial Literacy and Planning for Teachers

From December 2016 to May 2017, Kenan recruited 100 teachers from Khon Kaen and Chiang Mai and conducted a one-day financial literacy training course for teachers in both provinces. The training built teachers’ knowledge in personal financial management with a practical focus on expense and debt reduction and how to save regularly. The goal was to help teachers reduce their debt vulnerability and improve their financial situation. For three months following the training, Kenan provided one-on-one personal consultations to the teachers, giving individualized financial support.

Community-Focused Financial Learning and Leadership

Under the Community-Focused Financial Learning and Leadership project, Kenan and Citi Foundation increased the financial knowledge of members of disadvantaged communities to develop saving habits and achieve long-term financial stability. The project partnered with the Community Organizations Development Institute (CODI), a public entity that supports low-income communities, to provide financial literacy training to community groups. Furthermore, the project trains CODI staff and community leaders to deliver financial counselling and manage community funds. Over its first two phases, the project directly benefited 1,502 community members and 149 community leaders from 40 communities in Bangkok, Samut Prakan, Nonthaburi, and Pathum Thani. In phase three, the project trained 100 community leaders who then directly assisted with an additional 625 community members through 20 sub-grant projects.

Executive Committee and Board of Trustees

Executive Committee

• Khunying Jada Wattanasiritham, Chairperson of Kenan Foundation Asia
• Piyabutr Cholvijarn, President and Vice Chairman of Kenan Foundation Asia
• W. Charles Blocker, member of the Executive Committee
• John D. Kasarda, member of the Executive Committee
• Khunying Kasama Varavarn, member of the Executive Committee
• Dr. Chadamas Thuvasethakul, member of the Executive Committee
• Dr. Varakorn Samakoses, member of the Executive Committee
• Dr. Supavud Saicheua, member of the Executive Committee
• Pradap Pibulsonggram, member of the Executive Committee
• Richard Bernhard, member of the Executive Committee
• M.L. Puntrik Smiti, member of the Executive Committee

Board of Trustees

• Anand Panyarachun, Former Prime Minister of Thailand, Kenan Founding and Honorary Chairman

• Aidan ST. P. Walsh, Partner in Charge - International, KPMG LLP

• Joan Gillings, Consultant to the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health

• Khunying Jada Wattanasiritham, Chairperson, Kenan Foundation Asia, Independent Director, Siam Commercial Ban

• Piyabutr Cholvijarn, Kenan President, Former Deputy Minister of Industry, Thailand

• Supavud Saicheua, Managing Director, Phatra Securities PCL

• W. Charles Blocker, CEO, IC Partners (Thailand) Limited

• Dr. Chadamas Thuvasethakul, Executive Vice President, National Science and Technology Development Agency

• Owen Gwyn, Chairman, GEOCORP

• Gregory W. Brown, Director of the Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

• Dr. Varakorn Samakoses, Former Deputy Minister of Education, Thailand

• Dr. Woraphat Arthayukti, Chairman, Northern Gulf Petroleum Pte. Ltd.

• M.L. Puntrik Smiti, Former Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Labour of Thailand

• Dr. Peter Coclanis, Director, Global Research Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

• Khunying Kasama Varavarn, Member of the Council of State

• Dr. John D. Kasarda, Director, Center for Air Commerce, Kenan-Flagler Business School, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

• Suphatra Srimaitreephithak, Director-General, Thailand International Cooperation Agency (TICA)

• Pradap Pibulsongkram, Adviser to National Coordinator on ASEAN Connectivity

• Pala Sookawesh, Chairman, Council of Trustees, Petroleum Institute of Thailand (PTIT)

• Ambassador William H. Itoh, Former U.S. Ambassador to Thailand

• Richard Bernhard, Executive Director, Kenan Foundation Asia

References

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