| Danial Norjidi |
IN AN effort to shape compassionate youth to the society, religion and country, six participants from the Young Executive Programme Cohort-3 recently organised the Youth BEPassion Programme which included a three-day and two-night camp called Youth CAMPassion.
The camp was held on September 14-16 at Sungai Kebun Sports Complex, and involved 34 youth aged between 16 to 18 from sixth form centres in the country, including: Paduka Seri Begawan Sultan Science College; Duli Pengiran Muda Al-Muhtadee Billah College (Maktab Duli); Meragang Sixth Form Centre, Sengkurong Sixth Form Centre; Tutong Sixth Form Centre; Sayyidina Ali Secondary School, Kuala Belait; and Hassanal Bolkiah Arabic Boys Secondary School (SMALHB).
According to a press release, the camp exposed the participants to different community services and volunteering activities while instilling good values and strong ethics among the participants.
“The camp also, indirectly, strengthened the knowledge and soft skills of the participants through its activities which included self-development activities such as teamwork and leadership, creativity and innovation and values and ethics,” states the press release.
It was shared that the camp provided an opportunity for the participants to be involved in volunteering activities and make a difference in the local community such as a Leisure Activity with the Children’s Cancer Foundation (YASKA), the Bandarku Bersih Campaign as well as a forum.
The forum – entitled ‘Volunteerism: What’s in it for me?’ – was aimed at enhancing the understanding and awareness of the youth on the importance of volunteerism and its role in shaping a compassionate and caring society.
It featured three panellists who are experienced and active in volunteering activities, namely: Legislative Council member and founder of Green Brunei Yang Berhormat Khairunnisa binti Haji Ash’ari; Bina Ukhwah Founder Pengiran Haji Ahmad Fadillah bin Pengiran Haji Sellahhuddin; and WeCare.bn association representative Azlin bin Azlani.
The organisers shared that the forum is hoped to have encouraged the participants to be actively involved in community service activities and inspire them to become the leaders of volunteer bodies.
On the second day of the camp during the Leisure Activity with YASKA, 11 YASKA children were entertained with fun games that were facilitated by the camp’s participants, including ‘Fish BINGO’, ‘Mystery Box’, ‘Gun Blaster’ and ‘Virtual Reality’ as well as crafting, ice-cream making and charades.
The Leisure Activity was held in collaboration with the Health Promotion Centre (HPC) of the Ministry of Health, which is also where it took place.
Meanwhile, 125 garbage bags were successfully collected during the Bandarku Bersih Campaign at the Al-Muhtadee Billah Mosque in Kampong Sungai Kebun area. The campaign was carried out in collaboration with Kampong Sungai Kebun representatives, fire fighters from Kampong Sungai Kebun, volunteers from Yayasan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah and the Department of Environment, Parks and Recreation (JASTRe), Ministry of Development.
It was shared that the campaign is hoped to create awareness on the importance of keeping Brunei clean while instilling good morale and attitude towards maintaining cleanliness of the environment. The organisers also noted that it also fostered mutual cooperation between the participants and residents.
“The camp provided a mind-changing and meaningful experience which can be gathered through the morals learnt from the activities. It also motivates me to be more active in voluntary works because little things do matter to others!” said a camp participant.