CENTRE FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND SERVICES (CENSERVE)

Outreach to Orang Asli Community

IIUM is well-known for its active programmes reaching out the Orang Asli not only the nearby Orang Asli community but also at other states including Kelantan, Perak, Pahang, Negeri Sembilan and Melaka as well as orang Iban in Sabah and Sarawak. More than 50 villages have been served by volunteers through activities run by student clubs under the supervision of CENSERVE.

This project is the continuation of existing Outreach to Orang Asli done by students as club-based activities which has been running since 1999 Currently there are 16 villages as foster villages of CENSERVE. The main objective of this project is to have mutual learning transfer between students and the Orang Asli Community. The students learn positive values adopted by Orang Asli such family ties which is very strong among the Orang Asli community. Students also learn various skills from Orang Asli which are not taught in classes.

Today 4 clubs namely COMRADE, JASA, TITIAN ASLI and PERKIM organize activities at 24 villages in Kelantan, Pahang, Perak and Selangor. They work in collaboration with JAKIM, Jabatan Agama Negeri and Jabatan Hal Ehwal dan Kebajikan Orang Asli.

OBJECTIVES

Among the objectives of this project are as follows:

• To encourage IIUM staff and students to get involved in community engagement and understand their social responsibility.
• To help in preserving the Orang Asli heritage and values
• To motivate and encourage Orang Asli children to love school.

TRANSFORMATION OUTCOMES

This project is planned in such away to produce the following outcomes:

A. ORANG ASLI:

• Orang Asli have positive perception towards  IIUM and the volunteers
• They learn some knowledge and skills from the volunteers
• The parents are more enthusiastic to send their children to go to school               

B. STUDENT VOLUNTEERS

• Learn and adopt positive values practiced by Orang Asl
• Able to develop various skills from Orang Asli
• Develop strong voluntary spirit

C. IIUM

IIUM will be seen as an engaged university in the eyes of the community

ACTIVITIES

IIUM volunteers serve the Orang Asli to improve their villages such as gotong royong to improve facilities in the villages. They conduct motivational programmes for school children to encourage them to continue schooling and become successful.

The volunteers encourage the Orang Asli children to go to school, teach them to read and other subjects taught at school. They are also guided on cleanliness and hygiene. In return IIUM student learn many values from the Orang Asli such as strong family ties, loyalty to the leadership that make them united.

• Outreach to Orang Asli settlements
• Gotong royong
• Motivation sessions for teenagers and school children
• Research and publication

COLLABORATORS

• CENSERVE Alumni
• Jabatan Kebajikan Orang Asli (JKOA)
• Yayasan Dakwah Islam Malaysia