The World Economic Forum (WEF) has recognized the work Jimmy Pham has done in lifting over 300 Vietnamese youth out of poverty by honouring him as a Young Global Leader (YGL).
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| Jimmy Pham (C) with Koto trainees in Saigon - Photo: Courtesy of Koto |
Jimmy Pham, Koto’s founder and international CEO becomes one of 190 young leaders from 65 countries to be honoured this year.
Pham who was born in Vietnam and raised in Sydney, Australia is one of two people honored in 2011 for work done in Vietnam.
Professional accomplishments, commitment to society and potential to contribute to shaping the future of the world through inspiring leadership are among the WEF selection criteria.
Koto (Know One, Teach One), the not-for-profit hospitality training organisation Pham founded and is now CEO of, has trained in excess of 300 street and disadvantaged Vietnamese youth in its Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh Citytraining centres. Its 24-month programme includes both front-of-house and kitchen, as well as English and life skills training and provides trainees with accommodation, food and medical care, all free of charge. It has a restaurant in Hanoi where trainees work to get practical experience and all profits are invested back into the programme. Koto will open a restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City in 2011.
Koto opened in 1999 as a small Hanoi-based sandwich shop and has grown over the past 11 years into a 150-seat restaurant and an internationally accredited (by Box Hill Institute, Australia) hospitality programme.
