PENANG, 29 June 2015 – Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) would further enliven the industry and community engagement programmes by giving more focus on the involvement of the B40 household group, those which are economically less capable and with an average household income being in the lowest 40 percent.

The Vice-Chancellor of USM, Professor Dato’ Dr. Omar Osman said, the university is committed in sharing its expertise to assist in realising the aspiration of the country to raise the income levels of the B40 group to more appropriate levels within the next five years through its engagement programmes.

He said, USM needs to define quality and excellence not only in terms of academic and research development, but also in being the expert for reference in matters of socio-economic development of the society.

“The USM community needs to utilise innovative measures in providing input, at the same time ensuring programmes concerning knowledge and technology transfer become more meaningful to reduce the gap and bring the people closer.

“We are also a part of society and USM always professes to the principle of building networks with various parties, in order to provide the community with the means to escape from the clutches of poverty and transform their lives to be more sustainable,’’ he said.

He stated this when honouring the 348 recipients of the certificate of excellence, who had done the university proud in the various engagement programmes, in conjunction with the Community/Industry Engagement Award Certification Ceremony with the theme Di Sini Lahirnya Sebuah Harapan here recently.

Also present was the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (DVC) Industry and Community Network, Professor Dato’ See Ching Mey and the DVC of Students’ Affairs and Alumni, Professor Dato’ Dr. Adnan Hussein.

In commenting the involvement of many to make the engagement programmes successful, he said: “The dedication shown by all carries the aspiration of USM in transforming the society, besides instilling a sense of sharing between the university-community, which is beneficial to both entities.

“The universiti is not just a towering repository of knowledge, instead having a larger role as an institution that spreads and explores knowledge, and where the intellectuals converge and dedicate all their efforts to impart knowledge to the country’s future generations.’’

Meanwhile, those receiving certificates in the ceremony come from various categories, which include acknowledgements given to outstanding individuals from among the academic staff, administrative staff, students as well as external parties, and also special acknowledgements given to recipients from the industry.

The Industry and Community Network Division also for the first time has introduced a special recognition to the respective centre of responsibility (PTJ) in achieving excellence, where it acknowledges impactful projects done by the PTJ which has brought significant changes to the targeted communities. - Translation: Mazlan Hanafi Basharudin/Text: Marziana Mohamed Alias/Photo: Mohd Fairus Md. Isa & Zamani Abdul Rahim