Djarum funds 387 university students

Djarum funds 387 university students

KLATEN: As part of its corporate social responsibility programs,
cigarette producer PT Djarum awarded on Wednesday 387
scholarships to university students from 65 universities from
across the country.

The scholarships were officially presented in a festive
ceremony held at Pelataran Wisnu (or Wisnu Opening) of Prambanan
Temple in Klaten, Central Java, on Wednesday evening.

Held under the title of Malam Dharma Puruhita, the ceremony
was also made merrier with the appearance of a number of national
singers including Krisdayanti, Christoper Abimanyu, Once, Ahmad
Dhani and Djaduk Ferianto's Kua Etnika orchestra.

Speaking at a press conference held ahead of the ceremony on
Tuesday, PT Djarum's Head of Corporate Affairs Suwarno M. Serad
said that the company had been providing the scholarships for the
past 10 years.

However, Malam Dharma Puruhita has only been held for three
years. Wednesday's event was the fourth that the company has held
to officially present the scholarships to the selected
recipients.

"We consider this as our long-term investment in the
development of our human resources," Suwarno said.

As such, he said, the scholarship recipients were also obliged
to participate in a number of off-campus activities that PT
Djarum provided in a bid to improve their non-academic
competence.

"Through the program we want to create job creators, not just
job-seekers," said Suwarno, adding that as of 2005, PT Djarum had
awarded a total of 4,646 scholarships to university students
under the same program. -- JP