FOUR non-governmental organisations in Penang were among the beneficiaries of the RM2.6 million fund announced by Micron Technology, Inc earlier this year.
The RM2.6 million Micron Foundation Covid-19 Relief Fund is aimed at supporting the immediate and future needs of Malaysians impacted by the health crisis.
Micron has two plants in Malaysia, and they are in Muar, Johor and Penang.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, during his visit to the Micron Memory Malaysia Sdn Bhd facility in Perai, presented the mock cheques to the four different NGOs.
They are the Peace Children Care Centre in Gelugor, Persatuan Kebajikan Jayam Sri Laxmi in Nibong Tebal, Sekolah Suria (school for children with special needs) in Sungai Ara and Penang Science Cluster.
“I believe that the impact of Covid-19 has caused many NGOs and related organisations to face difficulties in getting their regular support that they normally get to run their programmes and day-to-day operations.
“It is very thoughtful of Micron to introduce this fund and to have it disbursed to the needy groups across Penang and southern Malaysia.
“I hope that these four organisations will find the contributions very helpful and I would like to thank Micron for the good deed during this period,” said Chow during the mock cheque presentation ceremony to the beneficiaries today.
Out of the RM2.6 million fund, a total of RM250,000 had been allocated to the four NGOs, namely RM40,000 to Peace Children Care Centre, RM40,000 to Persatuan Kebajikan Jayam Sri Laxmi, RM100,000 to Sekolah Suria and RM70,000 to Penang Science Cluster.
Micron Memory Malaysia Assembly and Test Operations vice-president Amarjit Singh Sandhu said that a special committee was set up in the facilities in Muar and Penang to work closely with several NGOs and the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) to identify potential beneficiaries.
“I would like to congratulate the four NGOs that received part of the RM2.6 million fund allocated, and we hope to identify even more needy groups to benefit from this fund,” Amarjit said during his speech.
Micron Technology is a world leader in innovating memory and storage solutions that accelerate the transformation of information into intelligence, inspiring the world to learn, communicate and advance faster than ever.
With an existing facility in Perai on the mainland, the company is looking forward to expand its operations in the Batu Kawan Industrial Park.
The new location will strengthen and accelerate Micron’s ability to establish a world-class solid-state drive (SSD) assembly and test facility with advanced capabilities, as well as support the nearby Singapore NAND Center of Excellence.
In 2018, Micron had announced that the new facility would cost some RM1.5 billion, with 1,000 job opportunities to be offered.
The facility is expected to be completed by Quarter 1 2021.
Also present during the visit was InvestPenang chief executive officer Datuk Loo Lee Lian.
Story by Kevin Vimal
Pix by Ahmad Adil Muhammad
Video by Darwina Mohd Daud