A Selfless Act

A lifetime of efforts by Li Ka-shing has led to enormous benefits for today’s cause

Superman by name, Superman by nature.

Ninety-one-year-old Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing—who was given the nickname decades ago for the huge influence he wields over the city’s economy—sprang into action soon after the COVID-19 virus emerged in Wuhan, donating HK$100 million to the Chinese city in early February. That money was used to support healthcare workers through the magnate’s Li Ka-shing Foundation, which is the second largest private foundation in the world after that of Bill and Melinda Gates.

A week later, he gave a total of 250,000 face masks to 13 social-welfare organisations and six homes for the elderly in Hong Kong, as well as batches of medical supplies— including in-demand N95 masks—to doctors in public hospitals.

Some of Li’s previous philanthropic work—he has donated more than US$3 billion so far—is also bearing fruit during the current crisis.

His HK$214 million donation to the University of Alberta in Canada in 2010 led to the establishment of the Li Ka-shing Institute of Virology, which is currently conducting promising research into the best ways to test, treat and vaccinate against COVID-19.

Similar research is being conducted at the Li Kashing Faculty of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong, to which Li donated HK$1 billion in 2005.

The faculty’s website on the subject of COVID-19 (fightcovid19.hku.hk) has become a go-to resource for governments and the public, offering everything from the latest research papers to easy-to-understand fact sheets on the virus. The site also includes mindfulness activities and exercise classes geared towards people at home in lockdown.

Neither Li nor his foundation have announced what initiative or organisation they will be supporting next. But like Superman, he is likely to appear when you need him most.