Jayapura – A total of 210 students at the Elementary School (SD), Junior High School (SMP), and Senior High School (SMA) levels in Jayapura City received educational assistance through the Smart Scholarship program distributed by the National Amil Zakat Agency (Baznas) of Jayapura City.
The program is a form of concern for the world of education as well as an effort to help students from families in need so that they can continue their education without being constrained by costs. The aid funds that are channeled come from community zakat managed by Baznas and returned to the community in the form of empowerment programs in the field of education.
The Deputy Mayor of Jayapura, Rustan Saru, said that the educational assistance is expected to ease the family’s economic burden as well as provide motivation for students to continue to achieve and pursue their dreams.
“We hope this assistance will be a good first step for the young generation of Jayapura City to stay motivated to learn, fight, and achieve their dreams,” said Rustan in Jayapura, Friday.
According to him, education is an important investment in the development of human resources. Therefore, the local government continues to try to present various programs that support access to education for all children in Jayapura City.
Rustan emphasized that the Jayapura City Government is committed to ensuring that every child gets the same opportunity to receive education. The government does not want any students who are forced to stop schools just because of cost limitations.
“We are committed to ensuring that no child will drop out of school just because of cost. Education is the right of every child and is a shared responsibility to ensure that the right can be fulfilled,” he said.
The Jayapura City Baznas Smart Scholarship Program not only provides financial assistance, but also becomes a form of moral support for students to continue to strive to achieve academic and non-academic achievements. With this assistance, it is hoped that the recipients can focus more on following the learning process and developing their potential.
Baznas Jayapura City has been actively running various social programs that target the education, health, economy, and humanitarian sectors. The distribution of scholarships is one of the leading programs that aims to improve the quality of human resources through sustainable education support.
The beneficiaries come from various schools in Jayapura City and have gone through a data collection and verification process according to the specified criteria. This assistance is expected to be an encouragement for students to continue their education to a higher level.
Through collaboration between the local government, Baznas, and the community, it is hoped that more Papuan children will have access to proper education. These efforts become an important part in creating a young generation that is intelligent, with character, and ready to contribute to the development of Jayapura City and Papua in the future.
