AirAsia's efforts in aiding underprivileged cancer patients in Malaysia was recognised with the #AirAsiaMAKNA campaign receiving a Silver award for ‘Best CSR Communications' at the MARKETING PR Awards 2017 gala dinner held in Singapore yesterday.

The MARKETING PR Awards 2017 celebrates excellence in strategic communications and public relations across brands in Southeast Asia. Under the CSR category, ‘#AirAsiaMAKNA - A Little Change Goes A Long Way' was acknowledged for championing cancer awareness across communities while being a responsible organisation of the society.

Aireen Omar, Chief Executive Officer of AirAsia said, "#AirAsiaMAKNA is more than just a campaign. It is our long term commitment with the National Cancer Council Malaysia (MAKNA), for a cause that is very personal to all our hearts. What we aim to do with this campaign is not only continue the awareness on cancer but most importantly help patients who are in need by raising funds."

"We are humbled to receive this award and we dedicate this win to all the cancer fighters out there. We would also like to thank MAKNA for allowing us to collaborate with them on this journey. We look forward to expand the campaign further across the region, reaching out to the communities that we serve."

AirAsia and MAKNA joined forces in the fight against cancer to launch the #AsiaAsiaMAKNA campaign in 2015. Since the inception, AirAsia has successfully raised and donated more than RM650,000 via the iconic Captain and Cabin Crew t-shirt sales, Travelling Beruang Campaign and 10-cents pledge initiative.

AirAsia also received a Gold Award for Social Media Category and a Silver Award for CSR Category last year at the Marketing Excellence Awards for the Travelling Beruang Campaign, a collaborative project with Media Prima, which helped create awareness about children with cancer in Malaysia and raise funds for MAKNA.

For more information and to find out how to contribute to the cause, please log on to makna.org.my.