Photo: Rasdin Baharudin is a young man from Kurunga Village, South Halmahera Regency. Thanks to GMM’s scholarship, he now studies at Khairun University in Ternate, North Maluku
SOUTH HALMAHERA – PT Gelora Mandiri Membangun (GMM) is actively championing lifelong learning through scholarships for 22 university students who reside in surrounding villages. The awarding ceremony took place recently on Thursday (9/10/2026).
Present at the event was Rasdin Baharudin, a resident of Kurunga Village. The awardee saw this initiative as a lifeline at a time when government scholarship programs are no longer available.
“On behalf of all recipients, I would like to thank PT GMM for upholding its commitment to continuing its education-focused CSR program, the scholarships,” Rasdin said. “We badly need this support as the local government no longer offers college scholarships.”
The young man is just one of four people from Kurunga who were awarded by GMM this year. Like the other three, he had to leave his hometown and travel to another island to continue his education.
Rasdin is enrolled at Khairun University in Ternate (North Maluku), ten hours away by boat. Long travel hours are part and parcel of the rural student experience, specifically that of students in GMM’s operational area. Given these circumstances, Rasdin found the scholarships to be incredibly valuable.
“We’re also deeply grateful for all the facilities provided for this year’s batch. We hope programs like this will remain available in the years to come.. [and] we promise to make the best possible use of these scholarships and not waste this opportunity,” he vowed.
To Rasdin — and the other beneficiaries — the long distance between home and school is only a tiny part of their journey to reach the future. GMM hopes this journey doesn’t stop at college, but carries on back to the villages through applying knowledge and experience to drive development. (PR)
