Youths who help the poor

By LIM SHIE-LYNN

newsdesk@thestar.com.my 

Empowering young people to educate other youths. This self-sustaining plan is the brainchild of Madenjit Singh and his son Raj Ridvan Singh, who believe that Cambodian youths can educate themselves to step out of their poverty-stricken world.  

Raj...sole Malaysian representative for the Youth Social Enterprise Initiative.

Initiated six years ago in Cambodia, the philanthropic father and son established a non-governmental organisation, Science of Life System 24/7 (SOLS 24/7) with the faith that youths respond better to youth leaders.  

The SOLS 24/7 centres in Cambodia offer a two-year boarding programme where youths between 16 and 25 learn English, information and communication technologies (ICT) and other skills.  

Raj, 22, said the project was a success as almost 90% of their students had gained employment.  

He added that this was a significant mark as his organisation’s focus was to help people in poor countries to earn a livelihood.  

Raj became the youngest computer systems engineer in Asean when he graduated at the age of 16. However, he turned down a lucrative job offer to focus on the project in Cambodia.  

“I was giving lectures at private colleges at 17 and I was materially fulfilled. However, there was an emptiness in me,” he said, explaining his choice to focus on social service. 

“I want to share my ideas with other people who want to strike a balance between materialism and social service.” 

Raj's generosity has made him the sole Malaysian representative among 10 short-listed finalists for the Youth Social Enterprise Initiative (YSEI). Under this programme, grants up to US$15,000 will be given to the winner who is able to provide sustainable development to underprivileged societies through the use of ICT. 

“I hope to channel the funding of my new project in Timor Leste,” he revealed.  

The YSEI, a Global Knowledge Partnership initiative, was officially launched in Kuala Lumpur last week.  

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