Bright prospects for OKUs in Sarawak in TVET-related programmes — Association

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Tan (second left) receives a memento from Joyce, as (from left) Lim, together with national para-powerlifters Bonnie Bunyau Gustin and Jong Yee Khie, look on. — Photo by Ting Tieng Hee

KUCHING (Oct 16): Funding opportunities for individuals with special needs (OKU) in courses and programmes related to technical and vocational education and training (TVET) in the near future is bright, say Sarawak OKU Skills Development Association (Sosda) founder Dunstan Lim.

Regarding this matter, he said he had met up with the representatives of the Entrepreneurs Division of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Industrial Terminal and Entrepreneur Development (Mintred), Yayasan Sarawak, Sarawak Skills Development Centre (PPKS), Akademi Binaan Malaysia and Kolej Komuniti Kuching – all of whom had voiced out their support towards the collaboration with Sosda in helping the OKU community in Sarawak.

“Sosda’s vision is for OKUs in Sarawak to have various training opportunities in skills relevant to and accepted by the industries, for them (OKUs) to tap into their capabilities and potential in contributing to making Sarawak a high-income and advanced state come 2030.

“Our objectives of partnering or collaborating with various educational institutions and TVET institutes, and pursuing funding through grants, special assistance loans, scholarship and others, are to help the OKUs have such services upon seeking training in skills development as most of them are in the B40 income group.

“This is to enable them acquire the (TVET) skills and certification relevant for work,” said Lim at the ‘Sosda Introduction to Skills Development Opportunity For OKU Programme’ today.

He said with regard to the OKU community, the entry criteria for skills-training programmes would need to be relaxed, especially those courses that were more hands-on like basic reading, writing and counting.

“We also hope to form partnerships and collaborations with the major corporate companies, government agencies and ministries, as well as with individuals, in the programmes so that we all have the opportunity to live in an inclusive community.

“Sosda wants to make sure that all agencies and corporate companies would qualify a minimum employment quota percentage for the OKUs, where lots of companies and government agencies have not even come close to it.

“One way for them not to say no is to equip the OKUs with the competency and the qualifications for the assigned, and also to facilitate the improvement of the hard and soft skills-training paramount to their (OKUs’) development,” added Lim.

He said Sosda’s other main function would be the ‘Abilympics’, where the association would act as a Sarawak chapter for this programme, which is a skills-based competition comprising various disciplined such as cooking, baking, flower-arrangement, cake-decorating, webpage designing, silk painting, and many other types of arts-based activities.

“The 10th International Abilympics – also known as the ‘Olympics of Abilities’ – would be held in Moscow next year. We have been tasked to do a statewide Abilympics awareness campaign starting January 2022, with the Malaysian Council For Rehabilitation (MCR) and for this purpose, we need to work closely with the Ministry of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women and Childhood Development.

“Apart from that, we will also act as a guide or mentor for the Belia OKU Setia Sarawak (BOSS) programme – a pilot initiative involving Sosda’s youths aged between 15 and 30 to engage, organise and participate in any event or activity that they are interested in.

“We will do a Google form registration for those interested in BOSS,” he added.

At today’s event, among those invited for sharing-sessions were Ministry of Youth and Sports Sarawak principal assistant secretary (sports division) Frederick Tan, national para-powerlifting head coach Jamil Adam and coach Md Ariff Azahari.

Also present was Youth and Sports Department Sarawak’s OKU Sports Development Unit head Joyce Anyie, who represented the director Lamat Nyalau.