Red Cross calls for small donations

The Red Cross Society of China in Beijing will encourage more people to make small donations through text messages, mobile phones and online payments.

The charity has received 50.12 million yuan ($8 million) in donated money, and emergency relief supplies worth 970,300 yuan from January to October, said Liu Na, vice-president of the charity in the capital at a meeting on Tuesday.

Liu said Beijing Red Cross faces serious challenges in fundraising and relief efforts, because of limited channels and weakened reputation.

It launched a pilot run of a donation platform via text messages, in response to the devastating rainstorm that killed 79 people in the capital in July. Each message sent to the designated number, 1069999310, means 1 yuan is donated to the charity.

On-site offers at Red Cross donation centers, bank transfers and online payments have been the main channels through which the charity receives donations.

More donation boxes will be placed in airports, railway and subway stations and post offices.

The charity pledges to quickly inform the public on donations received and how they money is being used. On its website, records of monthly donations and spending on charity work can be traced back to January 2011.

The Red Cross Society of China and its affiliated organizations nationwide have been under tighter public scrutiny over transparency and credibility. This follows a scandal in June 2011 when Guo Meimei, a 21-year-old woman, claimed to be a manager of a group associated with the society and bragged online about her lavish lifestyle.