KUCHING, May 31 — Those returning to hometowns to gather with relatives during the Gawai Dayak celebration tomorrow can make best use of the festive occasion to share the importance of education with the rural community, says Yang Dipertua Negeri of Sarawak Tun Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar.

He called on the people to play a role as agents of community development by spreading the importance of the education sector to ensure Sarawakians do not fall behind the tide of progress.

"Let us spread information about the various educational initiatives planned by the Sarawak government, led by Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg, to make Sarawak a developed region by 2030,” he said in his message in conjunction with the 2024 Gawai Dayak celebration.

He said the establishment of several institutions of higher learning as well as international schools owned by the state government would certainly help the people to take steps to ensure that their children were ready to realise the various initiatives through education.

The five higher education institutions owned by the Sarawak government are i-CATS University College (iCats), Sarawak Skills, Centre For Technology Excellence Sarawak (Centexs), Sarawak University of Technology (UTS) and Laila Taib College, while the five international schools involved the Yayasan Sarawak International School located in Petra Jaya, Kuching, Sibu, Bintulu and Miri.

Wan Junaidi said that by mastering knowledge, the people of Sarawak would be able to grasp various technologies, including green technology and artificial intelligence, which were listed in the Post Covid-19 Development Strategy 2030 (PCDS) driven by the state government.

"With sufficient skilled local human resource, we will not depend on foreign experts in the PCDS 2030 framework. Instead, we will leverage local expertise to elevate Sarawak as a developed state by 2030,” he said.

He also advised the people of Sarawak not to use poverty as an excuse to deny their children education, as the government provided various aids to ensure that every citizen in Malaysia had the opportunity to pursue knowledge up to the university level.

In conjunction with the Gawai Dayak celebration, Wan Junaidi expressed hope that the tradition of visiting each other during festivals, especially in Sarawak — where the people come from various ethnicities and religions — would remain, and be passed on to the future generation. — Bernama