Friday, 9 October 2015 – Caring for each other, regardless of age, is a responsibility of many parties, including the private sector. The benefit of social care will be experienced by the public in general, especially when the activities are held continually.

This concept is also practiced by Tanoto Foundation, in the event of Bakti Kasih ( Devotion of Love) in the Putra Bangsa Berbudi School in Jl. Kebun Sayur/ Bayur, Deli Serdang District, North Sumatera. The annual event is also held in the memory of the passing of Mrs. Anisah Tanoto.

Hermanto Tanoto, a member of Advisory Board for Tanoto Foundation Medan, explained that this event is a virtuous testament of Mrs. Anisah Tanoto. “Our mother, Anisah Tanoto, always cared for others. She reminded us to always contribute virtues to others,” Hermanto Tanoto said.

In this occasion, Mr. Hermanto Tanoto, along with the representative of the family and Tanoto Foundation, presented the support to students and staff of Putra Bangsa Berbudi School, as well to the Mahasampatti Monastery, and residents of the area.

Apart from continuously running social activities, the Tanoto family, through Tanoto Foundations, is committed to run the efforts of tackling poverty, particularly through three pillars, including Education, Community Empowerment, and Enhancement of Quality of Lives in North Sumatera, Riau, and Jambi province. In the realm of education, Tanoto Foundation continuously supports the effort to improve the quality and accessibility of education. In the realm of Community Empowerment, Tanoto Foundation works with corporate partners to run activities such as farmers training within the Integrated Farming System. Also, in the realm of Enhancement of Quality of Lives, one of the activities is to improve access to clean water and sanitation facilities.

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For further information, please contact the following:

Lestari Boediono, Head of Corporate Communications

Phone: +62 21 392 3189, Fax: +62 21 392 3324

Email: lestari_boediono@www.tanotofoundation.org

About Tanoto Foundation

Tanoto Foundation, which was established by Sukanto Tanoto and Tinah Bingei Tanoto, has a vision to become a center of excellence in the effort for Poverty Alleviation through Education, Empowerment, and Enhancement of Quality of Lives. In the realm of education, Tanoto Foundation supports the improvement of accessibility and quality of education in Indonesia.

In order to improve the accessibility of education, Tanoto Foundation has rewarded scholarships to more than 5,400 students and university students, as well as working in partnership with 28 Universities in Indonesia. Moreover, to improve the quality of education, Tanoto Foundation works in partnership with over 320 schools in North Sumatera, Riau, and Jambi. Among the programs operated are to develop the capacities of teachers in classroom-based teaching and learning, training for students to improve their habit to live clean and healthy, as well as supporting students to improve their fascination in reading books.

In the realm of Community Empowerment, Tanoto Foundation works with corporate partners, PT. Riau Andalan Pul and Paper. One of their programs is to train 3,400 farmers in the Integrated Farming System. Tanoto Foundation also works with other corporate partners, including Asian Agri. The programs were developed to raise the income of more than 3,600 independent farmers who manage in approximate 11,000 hectares of sustainable palm oil plantations.

In the realm of Enhancement of Quality of Lives, Tanoto Foundation works with corporate partners to run programs such as health and development of clean water and sanitation facilities.

For further information, please visit: staging2-tanotofoundation-org.averis.emerain.net

Dewi Tambunan (front, sixth from left) during Scholarship Signing Agreement Ceremony.

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Higher education was only a dream for Dewi’s family. None of her family members, from her grand father to her cousins continued their education to university level. Because of the family’s financial limitation, they could only finish high school.

Dewi Oviani Tambunan was born in Pekanbaru on October 16, 1995. Her father works as a truck driver, transporting logs for a small company. Her mother is a home maker. Dewi is the youngest of three children. Her eldest brother works as a driver and helps their father. Her other sibling does not have a job yet.

From elementary to high school, Dewi’s academic performance was outstanding. After graduating from SMAN 5 Pekanbaru, she was accepted at Mathematics and Science Faculty of Bogor Agriculture University.

Although her father always said for Dewi to focus on studying, she was concerned about her family financial condition. She was trying to find ways to lessen their burden. One day, during the Third Semester, Dewi saw a campus announcement that Tanoto Foundation was receiving applications for scholarships. Dewi felt that her chance finally arrived.
She then started to prepare the paper work that was required for the application process. However, she was confused because she had to provide her parent’s salary slip as proof of income.

“I did not want to create problems for my mother because she did not know what a payment slip was,” Dewi said. “At that time, my father and brother were still in the forest to pick up logs. So, to get the slip, my mother went to the garage where my father worked. To reach the garage, my mother had to take public transportation and continued her journey on foot because the garage was out of the way.”

Supported by her dream to get the scholarship and serious effort, Dewi was able to go through the different stages of the selection process. After completing the psychological test and interview successfully, Dewi finally became a Tanoto Scholar, or recipient of Tanoto Foundation scholarship. Her hope to lessen her parents’ burden has been realized. Moreover, the support comes from Tanoto Foundation, an institution that is well known in her campus.

“From other Tanoto Scholars, I learned that Tanoto Foundation does not only provide financial support. Tanoto Foundation also supports the Scholars to improve their soft skills and ability to become leaders in the future. Tanoto Scholars are encouraged to network with others from Indonesia. I am happy and proud to be a Tanoto Scholar,” said Dewi.

SDN 29 Terusan Jambi can easily access clean water despite the dry season.

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Written by Yudha Priana, Tanoto Foundation Jambi

The rain has not yet come. Since May this year, because of the extended dry season, many areas in Jambi have also experienced drought. The surface of Batanghari River has consistently been going down. Normally, the surface of the longest river in Sumatra would reach 10 meter. Now, it is less than seven.

To overcome the drought, communities use wells as their only sources of clean water. However, without any rain, these wells will eventually dry out too. During afternoon or night time, many people would go to the River to get clean water.

Fortunately, this problem is not found at SDN 170/I Kehidupan Baru, SDN 175/I Karya Mukti, SDN 176/I Karya Mukti, SDN 149/I Lebung Kato Ati and SDN 29/I Terusan. These five schools have been participating in Tanoto Foundation’s Hygienic School program. As part of the collaboration, Tanoto Foundation provides toilets and clean water facility for the schools.

In addition to supporting the schools during this long dry season, children of the schools also use the clean water to regularly wash their hands as part of Tanoto Foundation’s Hygienic and Clean Living Campaign. Furthermore, teachers whose house is located near the school are also supported by the easy access to clean water.

Bapak Thamrin, Head of SDN 162/I Bukit Sari who lives not far from SDN 175/I Karya Mukti said, “The people of the village who live around the school are very appreciative of Tanoto Foundation’s support. Although it is a dry season, we can easily get clean water now. Our dry season this year is much easier than last year.”

Tanoto Foundation collaborates with more than 320 schools to improve their quality of education. The activities do not include only improvement of facilities and infrastructure of schools, but also teachers capacity building, support for students to develop love of reading, and dissemination of good practices in teaching and learning process to other schools. These activities are currently implemented in North Sumatra, Riau, and Jambi.