THE Penang Infrastructure Corporation (PIC) and the Pusat Perkhidmatan Setempat Nelayan (PPSN) had reached out to local schools in the southwest district to mark the National Day and Malaysia Day celebrations this year.
PIC, through PPSN, worked together with the southwest district Education Office and presented 300 Jalur Gemilang flags to SK Sungai Batu, SMK Teluk Kumbar, and SMK Seri Bayu.
Meanwhile, 56 pre-schoolers and Year One to Six pupils at SK Seri Bayu and SK Permatang Damar Laut also took part in the Malaysia-themed colouring contests, organised by PIC.
Separately, southwest district education officer Shamsul Fairuz Mohd Nor commended PIC, PPSN, and the Penang South Islands (PSI) project delivery partner SRS Consortium Sdn Bhd for contributing to the student’s education in the southwest district, especially those from the B40 families.
PIC, PPSN, and SRS Consortium were working with the southwest district Education Office to implement learning recovery classes for Year One to Three pupils as part of the PSI project’s Social Impact Management Plan (SIMP) which offers educational support programmes to fishermen’s children in the PSI vicinity.
Shamsul said he hoped there would be more collaborations that could benefit other schools in the district.
“Collaborations with external parties can also bring transformation to the southwest district Education Office,” he said, adding that he believed PSI would bring significant development and growth to Penang.
PIC is the special purpose vehicle set up by the Penang government to implement the PSI project, while PPSN is the state government’s one-stop outreach and information centre for the project. PPSN leads engagements with the local fishermen and stakeholders on behalf of the state government and PIC.
Besides the learning recovery classes for Year One to Three pupils, there were other educational programmes under the SIMP. They are Jaya Didik tuition classes at identified tuition centres for primary and secondary school students, and a hybrid education programme for Form Five students by USAINS Holdings at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) which was concluded early this month.
The learning recovery classes and the tuition classes will begin next month. It is understood that the costs for the three programmes are borne by the state government.