SDYIC 2022 innovation grants awarded to young innovators.

PETALING JAYA - After four months of rigorous training and prototype development since April, The Sime Darby Innovators Challenge (SDYIC) 2022 has announced three winners.

The competition winners were JS Innovators from SMK Jit Sin, Pulau Pinang, SPSMP from SM Sin Min (Persendirian) Sungai Petani, Kedah and Goal Diggers from SMK Bintulu, Sarawak.

Organised by Yayasan Sime Darby (YSD) with the theme "Help a Person, Change the World," SDYIC encourages students to create prototypes that will assist in resolving issues that are currently plaguing their respective communities.

All three teams received innovation grants from the YSD Innovation Fund, totaling RM60,000.

For the Goal diggers team from SMK Bintulu, the grant received will be used towards helping the people of Bintulu with waste management problems, notably those involving food waste.

The team from SPSMP Kedah, plans to use the innovation grant to assist families to stay informed about the health conditions of their family members who suffer from respiratory issues in response to the effects of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the team JS Innovators will assist in reducing traffic congestion issues faced by ten schools within the Seberang Prai Tengah district of Penang.

All 15 finalist teams, teachers, mentors, and judges were present for the SDYIC Grand Finale, which was virtually held and presided over by Y.A.M. Tunku Tan Sri Imran Ibni Almarhum Tuanku Ja'afar, the YSD Chairman.

He said SDYIC is an initiative YSD will continuously uphold, as the programme started in 2016.

" YSD has reached out to more than 17,000 individuals nationwide including secondary school students and teachers, undergraduate students and Sime Darby innovation officers.

“This year, we see another great intake of more than 600 teams made up of almost 2,500 students from almost 400 schools nationwide.

“This is a huge leap towards filling the large education gap in the country by making the competition ahead of its time and improving accessibility to students and 1,878 school teachers from across Malaysia,'' he added.

The winners will continue to receive guidance and support from YSD and its technical partner Chumbaka as well as mentors from the business community as they develop their solutions for the benefit of their local communities.

Local communities have benefited from winning prototypes over the years, such as ‘Enhance’, a mental health app that is available on Google Play Store, to address mental health issues that are prevalent in the area and cater to teens with depression.

SYID has been running for seven years with the support of the Ministry of Education Malaysia (MOE), the Malaysian Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), and Chumbaka, YSD’s technical appointed programme training provider.