KUCHING, May 10: Premier of Sarawak Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg has launched the Sarawak Sabbatical Programme at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies (OCIS) in England on Monday (May 8).
The programme is a Sarawak government initiative to provide training to Sarawak civil servants on sabbatical and to encourage and enable them to enhance their professional skillsets.
The Premier also inaugurated the Sarawak Wing at OCIS as part of the endowment initiative and collaboration between OCIS and the Sarawak government.
OCIS, under patronage of the former Prince of Wales and now King of England, is a recognised independent centre of the Oxford University and a registered educational charity that aims to encourage the scholarly study of Islam and the Islamic world.
In his brief address over lunch, Abang Johari expressed his hope for the Centre to extend its research sphere into the study of sustainability, decarbonisation and the green economy in order to keep abreast with current world action to mitigate climate change.
“Sarawak is well-poised to be part of the global order against climate change with various initiatives already in place towards decarbonisation, energy transition and the development of renewables.
“In fact I have to fly back to Kuching to launch a new technology to produce sustainable aviation fuel from algae on Wednesday,” he said to the diners who were mostly scholars,” he said in a statement today.
The sabbatical programme covers a range of tailored courses based on the need and requirement of officers for a duration of two months.
Earlier, upon arrival the Premier met with the Centre’s director Prince of Wales Fellow Dr Farhan Nizami CBE.
Accompanying the Premier were the Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, State Secretary Datuk Amar Mohamad Abu Bakar Marzuki, Deputy Minister for Utility Datuk Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi, Deputy Minister for Education and Innovation Datuk Dr Annuar Rapaee, Deputy Minister in the Premier’s Office Datuk Sharifah Hasidah Syed Aman Ghazali and Chief Political Secretary to the Premier Fazzruddin Abdul Rahman. — DayakDaily
