NEWS & UPDATES

BELAGA
6 NOVEMBER 2022

Sarawak Energy recently presented Academic Excellence Incentives to 59 young high-achievers from SMK Bakun and SMK Belaga in recognition of their excellent achievement in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) and Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM) public examinations for 2021.

This year, of the 28 SPM students from SMK Bakun and 6 from SMK Belaga, 7 achieved 6 to 7 A's, while 27 students achieved 4 to 5 A's.

For STPM, 25 students from SMK Belaga received the incentives - 3 with a cumulative grade point average (CGPA) above 3.70 including one with a perfect CGPA of 4.0.

Other STPM recipients included three students with CGPA of 3.33 to 3.70; 2 students with CGPA of 3.00 to 3.32; 13 students with CGPA of 2.67 to 2.99 and 4 students with CGPA of 2.5 to 2.66.

To inspire students and encourage academic excellence, Sarawak Energy has run the programme in the Belaga district since 2017 where its Bakun and Murum hydropower stations are located. Covering incentives for both primary and secondary schools, the programme has benefited 256 students to-date.

The Academic Excellence Incentive Programme was held at SMK Bakun on 27 October 2022 with Murum Assemblyman, The Honourable Kennedy Chukpai Ugon as the guest-of-honour. He was joined by the Political Secretary to The Premier of Sarawak, Michael Mujah Lihan, Acting Belaga District Education Officer, Periddie Achen; Deputy Chairman of BLNA, Pemanca Umek Jeno; Assistant Principal representing Principal of SMK Bakun, Boniface Ulok and Principal of SMK Belaga, Usat Isut.

Sarawak Energy was represented by its General Manager for Corporate Social Responsibility, Jiwari Abdullah; as well as management and staff from Bakun HEP, Corporate Social Responsibility and Human Resources Department.

Chukpai expressed his appreciation to Sarawak Energy for supporting education and youth development through its corporate social responsibility initiatives.

“Education ensures a bright future, must be balanced and aligned with youth development initiatives. With the aspiration of the Post COVID-19 Development Strategy 2030 by The Right Honourable Premier of Sarawak, we will be a thriving society driven by data and innovation to enjoy economic prosperity, social inclusivity and sustainable environment,” he said.

Chukpai further acknowledged Sarawak Energy’s commitment to other community investment programmes in Belaga including support for the Sungai Asap (Bakun Resettlement) Volunteer Firefighters Association, Longhouse Adoption Programme and other youth skills and entrepreneurship programmes, all of which are aligned with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

He highlighted that Sarawak Energy’s corporate social responsibility initiatives have benefited the communities and hoped the efforts would continue to benefit the project affected communities as more developments and positive impacts are apparent.

Earlier in his opening remarks, Jiwari emphasised that the company’s CSR initiatives under the pillar of Education & Young People included the Adopt-A-School programme for SMK Bakun and the Bakun Charitable Fund for Belaga students since 2019. This includes the commitment to equip youths with transferable skills as one of its priorities where prior to the pandemic, 15 youths from Belaga were trained as wiremen at the Miri Industrial Training Institute (ILP Miri).

“It is our hope that our students will continue to excel and mature into a generation that will support societal advancement for academic development and their progress in becoming our future leaders,” he added.

He added, “As a socially responsible corporate citizen, Sarawak Energy is dedicated to promote and uphold the four pillars - education and young people; environmental management and conservation; culture and heritage; and community development and entrepreneurship.

“In addition to formal education, we also emphasise the importance of preserving traditional knowledge and skill. We worked with the community to develop the Warisan Sape Belaga training programme currently conducted at Uma Bawang, Sungai Asap. Through this programme, more young people in Belaga will be interested in traditional sape-playing, as what we have seen in the success of Warisan Sape Telang Usan training programme conducted at Long San, Baram,” he said.

Prior to the ceremony, a briefing to the students was conducted on the scholarships, incentives, and bursary available to students, to encourage more application from students in rural areas for the assistance provided.

Murum Assemblyman, The Honourable Kennedy Chukpai Ugon (front row, 5th left) and General Manager for Corporate Social Responsibility, Jiwari Abdullah (front row, 6th left) joined the group photo with the recipients in
Academic Excellence Incentive Programme

Group photo with the organising committee and attendees