He Qiaonv (R), founder and chairman of Beijing Orient Landscape, donates 25 million yuan to Renmin University of China. (File photo)
(ECNS) -- Donations from China's top 100 philanthropists reached 12.8 billion yuan ($1.9 billion) in 2015, which included the largest single donation of 2.927 billion, according to a report by researchers at Beijing Normal University.
He Qiaonv, founder and chairman of Beijing Orient Landscape, topped the list after she promised to donate her company shares worth an estimated 2.927 billion to charity.
She has become the first woman to claim the No. 1 spot since the university's China Philanthropy Research Institute began compiling the list in 2011. She is also the first female philanthropist to contribute more than one billion yuan to charity.
Wang Jianlin, the chairman of Wanda, ranked fifth with his 360 million yuan donation. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. chairman Jack Ma donated 230 million, putting him in 10th place.
Although the philanthropists span 15 sectors, 21 work within the real estate industry, which also dominated the list in 2014.
Of the donations, 80.9 percent were contributions to funds, and funds in institutions of higher learning received nearly half, or more than 6.08 billion yuan. Governments at various levels received only 1.125 billion yuan in donations, about 8.78 percent of the total.
Most of the more hefty donations were directed at higher education, ecological and environmental protection, education at middle and primary schools, and poverty alleviation.
In regards to the geography of donations, Guangdong province in South China has 24 donors on the list, while Beijing ranks second, with 20. However, when the value of donations is taken into consideration, Beijing secures first place with 5.9 billion yuan coming from the capital city.
Wang Zhenyao, director of the China Philanthropy Research Institute, said Guangdong has traditionally led the donations geographically, but in recent years, as economic conditions have changed, the donations have come from more diverse regions.
