Foundation offering scholarships
JAKARTA: The Sampoerna Foundation is offering 30 scholarships to Indonesian students to obtain a master's degree in management and economics at six state universities in Java.
The six state universities are the University of Indonesia, Padjadjaran University, Bandung Institute of Technology, Gadjah Mada University, Airlangga University and the Indonesian Institute for Management Development, Sampoerna program director Citta Dinari Sellepan said.
The foundation also is offering two scholarships for students to obtain an MBA in the United States.
Citta said the scholarships were meant to help improve the quality of Indonesian human resources, so they could play a greater role in the country's development.
The scholarships are not binding, she said, adding that the foundation had so far awarded scholarships to 4,725 high school students, 20 undergraduates, 67 postgraduate students in Indonesia and five MBA students in the U.S. --Antara
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RI praised for haj management
JAKARTA: Malaysian Minister of Religious Affairs Dato' Seri Abdul Hamid bin Hj Zainal Abidin praised Indonesia on Friday for its ability to organize the haj pilgrimage for at least 200,000 people annually.
"Indonesia has been doing well in managing the annual haj pilgrimage," Dato' said after a meeting with Indonesian Minister of Religious Affairs Said Agil Al Munawar.
Malaysia sends 23,000 pilgrims on the haj each year.
Dato' said the cost of the haj in Malaysia was about the same as in Indonesia.
The Indonesian government set the cost of last year's pilgrimage at between US$2,575 and $2,775, including lodging.
Malaysians had to pay $2,400 for the pilgrimage, including accommodation.
Said Agil Al Munawar said earlier that the cost of the haj pilgrimage in 2004 would be Rp 2 million less than in 2003, due to the rupiah's appreciation against the US dollar.
Dato' also said that both Indonesia and Malaysia would propose changes in the arrangement under which Saudi Arabia is given the authority to organize shuttle services for haj pilgrims from Southeast Asian countries. --Antara
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UN checks RI's Congo mission
JAKARTA: A team from the United Nations visited the Army's Zeni Construction 13 unit in Lenteng Agung, South Jakarta, to check on the readiness of a task force to be sent to Congo.
The predeployment team from the United Nations Department of Peace-Keeping Operations (UNDPKO) wanted to observe the preparations of the unit, especially the equipment to be used by the task force in Congo.
The UN team consisted of the head of the UNDPKO transportation section, Girish Sinha, and engineers Lt. Col. Jose Solar, Lidya Tamale and Jangdish Rele.
The task force will take part in the construction of public facilities in the African country.
Some 175 Indonesian soldiers being sent to Congo will also help rebuild an airport, as well as repair roads and irrigation systems. --Antara
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Army to set up special 'raider' units
JAKARTA: The Army plans to establish special "raider" units in every military command across the country, with the training of the first unit to begin on Wednesday in Situbondo, East Java.
Army chief Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu and military commanders from across the country will attend the opening of the three-month training session.
"Special raider battalions will be established in every military command in the country," East Java Army spokesman Lt. Col. Chrisetyono TS said on Friday.
The first raider unit will be composed of 800 soldiers from the 507/Sikatan battalion, which just finished a two-month pretraining course in Pasuruan, East Java. --Antara