Resettled Murum community progresses with SEB support

0
Students at SK Tegulang with new school uniforms and supplies provided by Sarawak Energy along with the corporation’s CSR team, school teachers and parents.

Students at SK Tegulang with new school uniforms and supplies provided by Sarawak Energy along with the corporation’s CSR team, school teachers and parents.

KUCHING: Sarawak Energy continues to work with the resettled community in Murum to provide the necessary support to the Penan children to attend school and get proper education which is essential for a brighter future.

For the fourth consecutive year, Sarawak Energy’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) team distributed school aid to more than 300 pupils at SK Tegulang and SK Metalun, schools which the energy development corporation help set up for the community resettled by Murum Hydroelectric Plant (HEP).

The schooling aid meant to ease the financial burden of parents, includes uniforms, shoes, school bags, sportswear and stationery among others.

Sarawak Energy’s community relations assistant manager Ding Juh, presented the aid to headmasters Anu Garing and Majid Aja of SK Tegulang and SK Metalun respectively at two separately held ceremonies at the new multipurpose halls built by the corporation at Tegulang and Metalun resettlements.

Aisah Eden

Aisah Eden

Sarawak Energy’s executive vice president of corporate services Aisah Eden, said education and young people made up one of the CSR pillars of Sarawak Energy.

“Education is fundamental to the development and progress of a community and opens doors to opportunities for better livelihood. We work closely with the community’s representatives to identify priority areas and education is a key area.

“Aside from setting up schools and providing other forms of support, the corporation recently made its second contribution to the Bakun Charitable Trust focused on Penans in Belaga and Murum.

Jiwari Abdullah, Sarawak Energy’s head of CSR assured that it would continue to support the Penan community in Murum during this period of transition following their resettlement in December 2013. This is to ensure the resettled community is able to be self-sufficient.

“This year we will continue to build on our community engagement and develop programmes that address their needs sustainably. We will focus on knowledge and skills development of youths like providing educational support, diversifying their handicraft making and marketing skills and arrange for a development workshop for community leaders,” he said.

The upcoming initiatives specifically for Metalun include a ‘Youth Development’ programme in partnership with the Society for the Advancement of Women and the Family Sarawak and the extension of the ‘Literacy for

Social Inclusion’ programme carried out together with the Dyslexia Association of Sarawak.

The resettled community has experienced encouraging progress through Sarawak Energy’s past initiatives done in collaboration with agencies like the Workforce Development Unit in the Chief Minister’s Office, Kapit Resident Office, Belaga District Office, Department of Agriculture, State Education Department, Sarawak Forest Department, Murum Penan Development Committee and community leaders.

In addition to the schooling aid, Sarawak Energy is providing transportation assistance which improve attendance rate at SK Tegulang and SK Metalun.

Aside from Murum, Sarawak Energy is implementing community investment programmes in Baleh as part of its contribution to create a sustainable livelihood for Sarawak’s rural communities affected by its projects.

Skills training for Baleh’s youth is progressing in partnership with Institut Kemahiran Belia Negara and Institut Latihan Perindustrian, Baleh Education Enhancement programme with Institut Pendidikan Guru Kampus Batu Lintang.