CFS provides food aid and necessities to the local community

The Covid-19 pandemic and the uncertain lockdowns over the past two years have seriously affected the economic activities, causing many businesses to shut down and their employees to lose their jobs.

As members of the Kampar community, six academic staff from UTAR Centre for Foundation Studies (CFS) of Kampar Campus initiated a project called “The Hope Project”. Led by Suraiza Samsudin, the project was executed by collecting funds from UTAR staff. The funds were then used to purchase food and necessities to aid needy people around the Kampar area. The team successfully raised a total of RM1,890. The fund collection started from 11 August 2021 to 31 August 2021. 

The Hope Project provided an opportunity for the CFS staff to contribute food and necessities to people in need. Moreover, this project aimed to create awareness about people in need and build good collaboration with NGOs who are actively helping the local community.

In addition, UTAR and Persatuan Kebajikan Insan Prihatin Perak (PKIPP), an active NGO in Kampar, compiled the list of needy families so that the food aid and necessities can be channelled accordingly. The donations collected were used to purchase food items such as rice, wheat flour, instant noodles, rice vermicelli, cooking oil, canned sardines, sugar, salt, cream crackers, chilli sauce, soy sauce, sweetened condensed milk, spices, milk powder, instant beverages and diapers on 15 September 2021. The food and necessities were distributed the next day.  

CFS lecturer Ooi Siew Fong said, “We have successfully raised a total of RM1,890. This allowed the committee to purchase basic food and necessities for 30 needy families. This meaningful gesture encouraged us to be aware of needy people around the Kampar area, and we are happy to extend our help to those who were affected during the Covid-19 pandemic. We truly felt delighted when the families expressed their gratitude to us.”

The CFS committee expressed their gratitude to all their colleagues for their generous donations, and to the PKIPP team for helping with the distribution. The Hope Project is associated with SDG 2— Zero Hunger as it strives to end hunger and provide necessities to the local community who are facing food insecurity.