SCG Again Holds Sharing The Dream Program, Even 10 Years Give More Than 3,570 Scholarships With A Total Value Of IDR 17 Billion

Photo: Doc. SCG

JAKARTA - SCG, one of the leading companies in ASEAN, held a hybrid Sharing The Dream scholarship award ceremony for 493 selected students (123 students attended offline and 370 online) for the high school/equivalent category and undergraduate students at the Bidakara Hotel, Jakarta.

This event became the inauguration moment after a series of scholarship selection processes which were attended by more than 1,200 applicants who are domiciled in Jakarta, Bogor, South Tangerang, Karawang, Sukabumi, Lebak, and Bekasi. This year also marks SCG's 10-year journey in contributing to the advancement of Indonesia's education.

Also attending this event, the Minister of Education, Culture, Research and Technology, Nadiem Makarim, virtually. In addition, the Thai Ambassador to Indonesia, Prapan Disyatat, founder of Ancora Foundation, Gita Wirjawan, and the Daily Coordinator of the BAPPEDA CSR Facilitation Secretariat (Regional Development Planning Agency) West Java, Eka Sundana were also present.

SCG Country Director in Indonesia Warit Jintanawan said, this year, SCG Sharing the Dream marks a decade since its implementation in 2012. It is recorded that this program has distributed more than 3,570 scholarships for Indonesian students and absorbed funds of Rp. 17 billion.

"These funds cover education funds and development programs. This is SCG's commitment in realizing equal access to education as well as the implementation of the value of ESG 4 Plus (Environmental, Social, and Governance)," said Warit, in Jakarta, Wednesday, August 10.

Warit further stated that his party encourages scholars (scholarship recipients) to go directly to the community, see the problems around them, and have a dialogue to find solutions.

"Critical mindset, awareness, and character building of the younger generation are the targets of the impact of this program," he added.

The target is in line with the idea of "Independent Learning" from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology which encourages students to be independent in thinking and optimizing potential according to their interests and talents.

This is because Indonesia is ranked 107th out of 189 countries on the 2020 Human Development Index released by the World Bank. One of these indexes is measured by education; i.e. the children's average school years. Indonesia recorded an average school year of 8.2 years, while the expected school period for children was 13.6 years.

The Minister of Education, Culture, Research and Technology, Nadiem Makarim, expressed his appreciation for this program. His party at the ministry cannot work alone, because Merdeka Learning is a joint effort and collaborative movement that involves all levels of society, including the industrial sector.

Minister of Education, Culture, Research and Technology, Nadiem Makarim. (Photo: Doc. SCG)

"I appreciate SCG's commitment over the past 10 years to run the Sharing The Dream scholarship as one of the company's CSR programs. In addition, I am also happy to know that in this 10 year celebration, there has been an increase in the number of scholarship recipients. we are together to increase access to quality education," explained Nadiem.

SCG increased the number of beneficiaries to 493 students (480 high school students/equivalent and 13 undergraduate students) and Bekasi as a new area from the previous 410 students in 2019. This addition is the contribution of PT Fajar Surya Wisesa Tbk as a subsidiary under the SCGP business unit to 83 students from Bekasi.

The education funds disbursed are divided into two categories. The first, high school students Rp. 2,000,000 per person per year. Second, S1 students are IDR 8,000,000 per person per year for a maximum of four years of study.

In addition to tuition fees, SCG will also support three selected social projects from scholars, one of which is the Utilization of Organic Waste as Maggot Cultivation project by Elsa Nopiyanti, a student at the Bogor Agricultural University. The results of maggot livestock are useful as fodder for livestock such as poultry and also useful as organic fertilizer so as to help breeders and farmers save costs.

"The social project that I propose adapts the circular economy which is also applied by SCG. In my opinion, ESG is a corporate principle/standard that unites environmental, social, and corporate governance so that business activities can have a sustainable impact. Therefore, I apply these principles on my project so that it can be used sustainably," said Elsa.

At this event, there was also a talk show session to inspire scholars both offline and online with several speakers, namely the Founder of the EWasteRJ Sociopreneur Movement, Rafa Jafar, and PARASOL (Printable Alternative Solar Roll), the creators of Alternative Solar Roll innovations from plastic waste. is the 1st Winner of the ASEAN Level in the "ESG Hacks To Heal Our Planet" competition held by SCG regionally.

"We hope that SCG Sharing the Dream can be more impactful and strategic in supporting the government to solve education problems and social inequality in society, in line with our ESG 4 Plus campaign in Indonesia," concluded PT SCG Indonesia President Director, Chakkapong Yingwattanathaworn.