Fifteen-year-old Ahmad Albar Safar was full of excitement after receiving new sets of school uniform and school supplies.

“I am excited to start the new school term. The school pack definitely helps reduce my family’s burden for the coming school year,” he said.

Ahmad Albar was one of the 270 underprivileged students from primary and secondary schools within the Iskandar Puteri area chosen to receive the school supplies organised by Pelabuhan Tanjung Pelepas Sdn Bhd (PTP).

The “Back to School” programme is the flagship corporate social responsibility (CSR) education initiative by the Johor-based port operator which entered its 12th edition this year.

PTP, which operates Malaysia’s largest container terminal Port of Tanjung Pelepas, is a unit of MMC Port Holdings Sdn Bhd, a wholly owned subsidiary of MMC Corp Bhd.

Speaking at the event, Johor state executive for housing and rural development and Iskandar Puteri assemblyman Mazlan Bujang said education is a catalyst for upward social mobility.

“As such, it is encouraging to see a dynamic and leading corporate company like PTP giving opportunities to these underprivileged students to pursue their education in the most comfortable manner, as well as continuously enriching its surrounding communities via other CSR-based activities,” he said in a statement released by PTP.

Also present at the recent event, held in Gelang Patah, were Johor state executive for public works, infrastructure and transportation, and Puteri Wangsa assemblyman Senator Md Nasir Hashim, school principals, teachers and parents of students involved in the programme.

PTP CEO Marco Neelsen said the “Back to School” programme is meant to provide families with the assistance needed to enable their children to continue attending their lessons at school.

“It is also to alleviate the parents’ burden of providing essential school necessities.

“In providing these children with access to education, we hope to open up more opportunities for them to grow and develop, and that they will, in turn, give back to their families and community in the future,” he said in the same statement.

Apart from the initiative, PTP also organises tuition classes, boot camps and communication workshops for English, as well as motivational talks for UPSR and SPM students.

It has also organised career
insight programmes involving selected local university students from maritime studies such as the Maritime Management Studies, Nautical Science and Maritime Technology Applied Science. — TMR