Yinson Holdings Berhad (“Yinson” or the “Group”) has awarded grants of RM50,000 each to NGOs Kelab Belia Prihatin Malaysia (“Belia Prihatin”) and Persatuan Bantuan Kesihatan Mental (“Nyawa”) under the Group’s flagship corporate social responsibility programme (“CSR”), Yinson4Youth (“Y4Y”).
The two NGOs are the inaugural recipients of the Y4Y Grant, which opened for applications in November 2023. The grant received applications from youth-led organisations across the country, with the two winning projects awarded based on their potential to bring about the most impactful positive social and environmental transformation, whilst aligning to Yinson’s sustainability focus areas.
The grants were awarded yesterday at Yinson’s Global Headquarters in Kuala Lumpur in a ceremony attended by representatives from Yinson’s CSR committee, Belia Prihatin and Nyawa.
The winning project from Belia Prihatin, a collective registered under the Ministry of Youth and Sports, is the setting up of a mangrove nursery at Mangrove Point, Klang. The nursery forms part of ‘We-Be-Leaf Together’, Belia Prihatin’s ongoing nationwide mangrove conservation campaign that started in 2022. Aside from nurturing mangrove seedlings, the nursery will serve as a centralised hub for mangrove conservation, facilitating scientific research, and increasing community awareness. Mangroves are vital ecosystems that protect coasts, store carbon, and restore biodiversity. Yet, they are being destroyed at a rate 3 to 5 times greater than the average rate of forest loss. This project aligns strongly with Yinson's commitment to safeguard biodiversity, with one of the key strategies being the collaboration with partners to protect natural ecosystems and implement programmes for the restoration and rehabilitation.
Nyawa’s ‘Projek Sentosa’ in turn focuses on the mental health needs of the Orang Asli (indigenous people) community. The funding will be used to conduct much-needed research into the unique experiences of the Orang Asli youth and their understanding of mental health, as well as the development of a pilot intervention programme. The research and pilot intervention will take place in an identified Orang Asli village in Peninsular Malaysia, expected to benefit around 150 individuals. It is hoped that intervention outcomes can be extrapolated to improve the mental wellbeing of other Orang Asli communities in the future.
Yinson Group Chief Strategy Officer and CSR Chairman Mr Chai Jia Jun said, “Yinson believes that empowering passionate young changemakers is one of the key ways it can drive and deliver lasting positive change. Aside from financial support, we are committed to mentoring these young people so that their projects can deliver even greater value. We are excited to partner with Nyawa and Belia Prihatin on these projects and I am sure that we, in turn, will be greatly enriched by our involvement.”
Yinson Head of Corporate Sustainability, Dr Renard Siew Yung Jhien shared, “Heartiest congratulations to Belia Prihatin and Nyawa – we are honoured to support your important work in mangrove conservation and mental health – areas which align strongly to our own UN SDG commitments and sustainability goals. We were thoroughly impressed by the quality of all the applications received for the inaugural Y4Y grant, and in the future, we aim to expand the depth and reach of the grant to be able to help even more young changemakers achieve their dreams of a better future.”
Ms Jernell Tan, Advocacy Lead of Nyawa, said, “The support from Yinson provides an incredible opportunity for Nyawa to expand its mental health programme, in particular to the Orang Asli community. This group has faced significant challenges when it comes to mental wellbeing, due in part to longstanding socioeconomic marginalisation and erosion of land rights. Together with Yinson, we aim to conduct much needed research in this area in order to extend accessible and responsive mental health services to this community.” Mr Muhammad Rijal Mustafa Bin Rozman, Secretary of Belia Prihatin, said, “We sincerely appreciate Yinson’s support in our endeavour to tackle multifaceted challenges concerning mangrove ecosystems. We are excited to leverage Yinson’s industry experience and their contribution in corporate volunteering. We hope to bring groundbreaking changes in the conservation of mangrove ecosystem in collaboration with Yinson.”
