A Roof Over the Head for 87 Families in Kelantan

Kuala Krai, 11 March 2015 - After braving two months of living in makeshift tents and flood relief centres, joy and relief were written on the faces of the affected families who could finally move into a place they could call their own.

In a simple yet meaningful ceremony, Yayasan Sime Darby (YSD) in collaboration with MERCY Malaysia handed over the “keys” for 21 temporary shelters which have been built in Kampung Tualang, Kampung Bekok and Kampung Jalan Gael in Kuala Krai. The rest of the 66 temporary shelters for the villagers whose homes were swept away or badly damaged during the floods which hit the country in December last year, will be completed by April.

Present at the handover ceremony today were President and Group Chief Executive of Sime Darby Berhad YBhg Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Mohd Bakke Salleh, YSD Governing Council member YBhg Datin Paduka Zaitoon Dato’ Othman, MERCY Malaysia’s Honorary Secretary YM Raja Riza Shazmin Raja Badrul Shah and Executive Director Ahmad Faezal Mohamed.

During a visit to the affected villages, Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Mohd Bakke said the foundation supported the community project championed by MERCY Malaysia to assist the victims and help them rebuild their lives and future.

”Even though we were not affected and were nowhere near the areas which were hit badly, our hearts go out to those who have lost everything. Our priority is to help as best as we can to ease their burden. It is our social responsibility to help them re-build their lives and start afresh,” Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Mohd Bakke said.

Meanwhile, Raja Riza added: “Our experience and knowledge garnered during the tsunami in 2004, other natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcano eruptions and last year’s Typhoon Haiyan in Philippines, has helped us to manage the flood disaster much more efficiently through our holistic approach of Total Disaster Risk Management. Every disaster provides another milestone in our organisation’s growth and steeper learning curve which we are then able to share with our stakeholders like Yayasan Sime Darby. However, one must understand that each disaster is completely different from another and while we accommodate, we uphold the guidelines according to humanitarian standards as well as adapt to the crisis situation.”

These temporary shelters were introduced by MERCY Malaysia and built by a small group of experienced carpenters from within and outside of Kelantan. Each shelter is a 20’x12’ wooden structure consisting of 2 rooms complete with electricity and a toilet. The shelter provides a temporary abode for the families who have been living like nomads since December. Each shelter was completed in approximately three to five days. MERCY Malaysia worked closely with local authorities namely the District Office of Kuala Krai and the Village Development and Security Committee (JKKK) to ensure the affected families were allocated the temporary shelters.

Based on MERCY Malaysia’s experience in Acheh, these ‘Temporary Shelters’ serves as an important humanitarian intervention phase that can ease the burden of disaster victims for the next 2 years or more. These shelters also provide the security needed while waiting for their permanent homes to be rebuilt.

Since the floods in December, under its YSD Disaster Relief Fund, YSD has contributed a total of RM2.2 million towards flood relief efforts. Through MERCY Malaysia alone, YSD has contributed RM1.7 million. Just last month, 300 school children from Kuala Krai received the ‘Back to School Assistance’ from YSD Foundation which included school uniforms, shoes, schoolbags and other essential school supplies. YSD also sponsored 1,000 hygiene kits, medicine and funded fuel costs as well as logistics expenses to mobilise MERCY Malaysia’s medical teams in the three worst affected states, namely Kelantan, Pahang and Terengganu.

YSD also contributed RM500,000 to provide 800 families from flood affected villages surrounding Sime Darby estates in Pahang with food items and hygiene kits, electricity generator sets, cleaning equipment and kits for post-flood relief efforts and logistics expenses for distribution of the relief items.

Community and Health, one of the pillars of Yayasan Sime Darby’s philanthropy supports community-based programmes and sustainable initiatives intended to promote the wellbeing and health of disadvantaged people and enhance the welfare of neglected children and senior citizens, vulnerable women, people with disabilities and other marginalised groups.

For more information on the Yayasan Sime Darby, please visit www.yayasansimedarby.com

About Yayasan Sime Darby

Yayasan Sime Darby, or Sime Darby Foundation, was established in 1982 and is the primary driver of Sime Darby Berhad’s Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives.

The objectives of Yayasan Sime Darby are supported by its five pillars, namely: education; environment, community & health; youth & sports and arts & culture. While led by independent members of a Governing Council and managed by a dedicated team, Yayasan Sime Darby works closely with the Sime Darby Group, in areas of mutual interest.

Since its inception, Yayasan Sime Darby has awarded scholarships worth RM217 million to 2,519 students both in and outside Malaysia. It is supporting long term research projects of significant scientific value like the Stability of Altered Forest Ecosystems (SAFE) project which is the world’s largest ecological project, a joint effort with the Royal Society (The UK and Commonwealth Academy of Science). Yayasan Sime Darby is also actively involved in the development and improvements of sports in Malaysia namely track cycling, lawn bowling, cricket, tennis and golf. Under its community & health pillar, Yayasan Sime Darby supports initiatives to promote the well-being of disadvantaged people irrespective of race, culture, religion, creed or gender and works with established organisations to promote the development of arts and culture.