Honda Malaysia, together with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Malaysia have announced the fifth batch of scholars under the Honda Dream Fund (HDF) that will be blessed with the opportunity to strive for a better future through education. The fifth batch of 20 scholars also marks a milestone of 100 scholars under the programme to date.
Launched back in January 2007, HDF provides full and non-binding scholarships for underprivileged youths. Successful candidates will have the freedom to continue their studies at any university, college or educational and skills training institute in Malaysia.
“HDF has grown and come a long way since we started in 2007. The HDF team is proud to have journeyed with the scholars in pursuing their dreams through education. This year, we celebrate the milestone of 100 scholars. However, we are not just celebrating a number, we celebrate the lives of 100 young people from all corners of Malaysia who have been transformed through this scholarship opportunity,” said Yoichiro Ueno, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Honda Malaysia.
“UNDP remains committed to supporting efforts to assist marginalized and disadvantaged communities, consistent with Millennium Development Goal 1, to 'Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger'. Education can contribute to this goal, and the Honda Dreams Fund through access to education aims to transform the lives of deserving underprivileged students,” said Kamal Malhotra, UNDP Resident Representative for Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam.
The programme received a total of 1,679 applications this year. With a target of reaching out to more deserving youths, the HDF team took to the road to reach out to urban and rural communities in Sabah, Sarawak, Negeri Sembilan, Malacca, Johor, Perlis and Klang Valley.
At these road tours, representatives from Honda Malaysia and UNDP explained about the scholarship, the application process, and answered queries. More importantly, they also took video applications during these road tours. Through this, applicants were able to introduce themselves on the video camera and talk about their dreams, why it is important to them and their community. The video application format is a big help to applicants who could not express their dreams very well through written applications.
A total of 55 candidates were shortlisted to undergo a five day leadership and motivational workshop entitled ‘Dare to Dream’ that was held in Hulu Langat. The workshop saw the candidates undergo numerous activities to bring out different characteristics amongst the candidates such as mutual respect, perseverance, logical and creative thinking, compassion and teamwork.
The final selection process is through an independent advisory panel comprising members from various organizations, which are the All Women's Action Society (AWAM) and Malaysian Youth Council (MYC) in the evaluation and selection process. UNDP manages the process of selection to ensure unbiased award of the scholarship.
For more information on the Honda Dreams Fund, please visit the website at www.honda.com.my/hdf.
