250 to attend Azam-Yayasan Sarawak rural youth programme

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KUCHING: About 250 participants will attend a one-day rural youth outreach programme organised by Angkatan Zaman Mansang (Azam) Sarawak in collaboration with Yayasan Sarawak this Saturday in Pakan, Sarikei Division.

They comprise Form 5 students of SMK Julau and SMK Pakan, and some school leavers. The event, called ‘Jejak Aspirasi Belia’, aims to provide an avenue to expose rural youths to self-development opportunities in education and career development.

There will be sessions by Yayasan Sarawak on their scholarship programme and by the Centre of Technical Excellence Sarawak (Centexs) on technical education opportunities.

The Computer Science and Information Technology Faculty of Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) will share with the participants on the importance of ICT in future careers particularly with the advent of digital economy.

Also addressing the participants will be the District Officer of Pakan, while a member of Azam will conduct a motivational session.

As part of the programme, interactive group activities will also be held for the participants on the following themes: Nurturing a Creative and Innovative Generation; Building Creative and Innovative Communities; Interview Skills for Success; and Grooming for Success.

The team from Unimas, comprising a lecturer and two post-graduate students, will conduct the first session highlighting among others, the Internet of Things (IOT), to generate interest among rural students on exciting new possibilities in careers in ICT.

A team from Borneo744 will conduct interactive sessions to encourage the young people to nurture their creative and innovative talents towards building more dynamic and enterprising communities.

A youth member of Azam and an officer from Yayasan Sarawak will brief and conduct demonstrations for the participants on how to present and conduct themselves well for scholarship or job interviews.

A team of talented Azam ‘Young Soul’ volunteers will, meanwhile, provide some tutorials on personal grooming to stress on the importance of pleasant appearance both at school as well as in working life.

This rural youth outreach programme was first introduced by Azam in 2012 and had been held at eight locations: Niah, Kapit, Mukah, Marudi, Bau, Song, Sri Aman and Lundu.

Last year, for the first time, Azam partnered with Yayasan Sarawak to carry out the programme beginning in Song district.

This event at Pakan will be the last leg of ‘Jejak Aspirasi Belia’. Among other things, the programme hopes to contribute towards the state’s efforts at narrowing development gaps between urban and rural communities, especially among the younger generation.