Yayasan Sime Darby Extends Scholarship Awards to China

The memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between YSD, the philanthropic arm of Sime Darby Berhad, and CSC for a five-year collaboration marks Sime Darby’s commitment and support for its growing business presence in China and its aspiration to develop and nurture future leaders of high caliber.

The MoU will also enhance and promote the development of bilateral ties between the Malaysian and Chinese governments in higher education and increase the level ofmutual understanding between the people of both countries.

A signing ceremony was held today at The Westin Beijing Financial Street witnessed by Yayasan Sime Darby Chairman YABhg. Tun Musa Hitam, representatives from senior management of the China Scholarship Council and the Malaysian Ambassador to China, His Excellency YBhg. Datuk Iskandar Sarudin.

YSD was represented by Chief Executive Officer Puan Hajjah Yatela Zainal Abidin while CSC was represented by its secretary general, Dr Liu Jinghui.

The annual education sponsorship programme under YSD’s Student Exchange Scholarship Programme in China will commence this year with 14 scholarships worth RM7.83 million offered. 10 of the scholarships will be awarded to Malaysians who will under go a one-year undergraduate foundation course, leading to a four-year degree programme at top universities in China, including Peking University, Tsinghua University and Zhejiang University. Another four overseas scholarships will be offered to outstanding Chinese citizens to pursue undergraduate studies at top universities abroad.

In his speech, Tun Musa emphasized YSD’s commitment to increase the number of students sponsored from Malaysia and China moving forward.

YSD and Sime Darby Chairman, Tun Musa Hitam witnessing the exchanging of MoU documents between YSD CEO, Yatela Zainal Abidin and CSC Secretary General, Dr Liu Jinghui in Beijing.
 
“Through this initiative in China, we hope more Malaysian and Chinese students will have the opportunity to improve their skills and capabilities while being groomed to become leaders for Sime Darby and China in years to come,” said YABhg. Tun Musa, who is also the Chairman of Sime Darby Berhad and a former Deputy Prime Minister.

YSD is also considering offering more scholarships to outstanding Chinese citizens to study at prestigious universities in Malaysia. This is in tandem with the Malaysian Government’s vision to make the country one of the most-sought educational hubs in Asia by attracting more foreign students.

The CSC, which is a non-profit institution was founded in 1996 and is affiliated with the Ministry of Education, China. CSC supports the organisation, management and provision of financial assistance to Chinese citizens studying abroad and to international students and scholars studying in China. It is dedicated to developing China’s exchanges with other countries in the field of education, science and technology.

CSC will play a key role in managing the scholarship administration, recruitment and selection activities, logistics arrangement, welfare support and academic performance of both Malaysian and Chinese scholarship recipients sponsored by YSD in accordance with the Chinese Government’s rules and regulations.

The YSD’s Student Exchange Scholarship Programme in Chinawill provide full scholarships covering tuition fees and living expenses, books and laptop allowances, among others. With CSC’s assistance, YSD will also be extending other educational benefits to scholarship recipients including scholars’ development programmes prior to joining Sime Darby's workforce, internships and continuous personal support of the scholars' welfare and academic performance during the tenure of scholarships.

The Sime Darby Group, through its foundation Yayasan Sime Darby, also awards scholarships in other countries namely Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong and will be extending the scholarship awards to Liberia soon.