Companies offer helping hand to needy students

Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

While Indonesia's poor level of education is under the spotlight of the international community, it is a relief to know that many private companies are taking part in providing scholarships and other facilities for children from poor families.

A recent survey by the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) showed that some 67 percent of 53 million school-aged children could not continue with their studies due to poverty, or their parents' lack of awareness of the benefits of education.

In Jakarta alone, around 1.5 million people are estimated to be disadvantaged based on their lack of access to education and health services. It was only recently the City Council mulled doubling the funds for schemes to assist the poor.

The government itself, for its part, has not yet allotted the stipulated 20 percent of the budget as regulated in the Constitution to support its own program of making elementary and junior high school education compulsory.

"It is our social responsibility to the public. We hope it can help the students in their studies," Mitra Mandiri Foundation director, Gino Latief, said on Saturday, while handing over a donation of school stationary from oil company ExxonMobil to some 600 students of the SDN 3, 5 and 7 state elementary schools in Gandaria Utara, South Jakarta.

Gino explained that the event was the last of a series of donations this year by the company, for some 3,000 students from 16 state elementary schools throughout Greater Jakarta. The company has also been providing scholarships since 1999 for students in its main area of operations in Jakarta, Cepu in Central Java, and Lhoksukon in Aceh.

Each of the students accepted a package of a backpack with three notebooks, a drawing book and a pencil case.

"I now have a new backpack to go to school with. I really like it," said Indah, a second grader of SDN 3.

SDN 7 principal Bagyo and SDN 5 principal Kodrat Hidayat said they appreciated the donation, and expressing hope to get book donations, even used ones, for the students and the schools' libraries.

Also in the day, the Sampoerna Foundation donated school stationery as well as English course books and dictionaries to students of the Kartini Free Provisional Schools.

The Kartini schools, all located under the bridges in depressed areas of the city, are accredited, tuition-free schools funded and managed by twin sisters Sri Rossiati and Sri Irianingsih, who also run the renowned Kartini Free Health Clinic for the poor.

The schools currently provide free education from kindergarten to junior high school level to a total of 1,925 poor children.

Sapto Handoyo Sakti, Sampoerna Foundation's marketing and communications director, said that the foundation also planned to engage its scholars as volunteer tutors at the schools. "We want our scholars not only to be academically astute, but also to have the empathy and social conscience to share with others and contribute to the public."

Twins Rossi and Rian welcomed the foundation's donations and hoped that other private firms would do the same, although they said they would still be able to cover the schools' operational costs by themselves.

The Sampoerna foundation currently provides scholarships to a total of 9,110 students in 1,479 high schools throughout the country. It has also provided 1,000 scholarships to junior high school students since June this year. Meanwhile, some 170 undergraduate and post graduate university students are also enlisted as its scholars.