Rokiah Mahmud
The Brunei Darussalam Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) and four government-linked companies (GLCs) signed an agreement to strengthen bilateral cooperation yesterday.
The agreement between BDRCS with Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam (BIBD), Perbadanan Tabung Amanah Islam Brunei (Perbadanan TAIB), Progresif Sdn Bhd and Makan Ceria Sdn Bhd will enable a more committed bilateral cooperation in various training programmmes, especially first aid certification, mental health and psychosocial support assistance.
The agreement also shows a high level of commitment from GLCs in providing strong support to the BDRCS as a voluntary statutory body in the country.
Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and Minister of Finance and Economy II Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah witnessed the signing.
President of BDRCS Pengiran Dato Paduka Haji Mohd Yussoff bin Pengiran Haji Bahar, BIBD Acting Managing Director and CEO Hajah Noraini binti Haji Sulaiman, Managing Director of Perbadanan TAIB Datin Hajah Hasnah binti Haji Ibrahim; Progresif CEO Hajah Nurul Haniah binti Haji Jaafar and General Manager of Makan Ceria Mohd Al-Fatah bin Haji Seruji signed the agreement on behalf of their organisations.
Cooperation and collaboration between BDRCS and GLCs have been around since the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, in which these companies actively assisted and provided solid support in terms of financial, technical assistance, volunteers and logistics.
Meanwhile, also present at the signing was a delegation from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) based in Kuala Lumpur, led by Martin D Boer, who is in the country for a working visit to government agencies and public institutions. The ICRC has a long-standing engagement with various partners in Brunei Darussalam and despite the COVID-19 pandemic, activities continued throughout 2020 and 2021.