Six officers from the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) yesterday received the OBOE Endeavour Academic Excellence Award from the Australian government in recognition of their outstanding results during the recently concluded 13th RBAF Command and Staff Course (CSC) 2023.
High Commissioner of Australia to Brunei Darussalam Luke Arnold attended the ceremony held at the Defence Academy Royal Brunei Armed Forces (DA RBAF).
RBAF Commander Major General Dato Paduka Seri Haji Muhammad Haszaimi bin Bol Hassan was also present.
DA RBAF Commandant Colonel Pengiran Sharifuddin bin Pengiran Haji Yusof congratulated the awardees of the OBOE Endeavour Academic Excellence Award for their exceptional academic and leadership achievements during the course.
He also thanked the Australian government for their role in the initiative, with the award elevating the standards of excellence within the college.
Meanwhile, Arnold said the award was created to recognise the academic excellence of military officers from the RBAF, an opportunity to deepen mutual understanding and build networks between Brunei Darussalam and Australia and their armed forces.
He also appreciated and valued the RBAF’s continuous invitation for Australian officers to attend the CSC in Brunei Darussalam and looked forward to extending further offers for military officers from the RBAF to attend courses at the Australian Defence College.
The Australian High Commissioner then presented the award to the six recipients: 859 Lieutenant Commander Mohd Hydzir Zuhdi bin Haji Sulaiman from the Royal Brunei Navy (RBN); 881 Major Mohammad Sufrien bin Johan from the Royal Brunei Land Force (RBLF); 889 Lieutenant Commander Dayangku Lyadia Ulandari binti Pengiran Haji Muhamad from the RBN; 892 Lieutenant Commander Hidayatul Zabidah binti Haji Dayang from RBN; 907 Major Siti Nur Irmaya binti Yahya from the Ministry of Defence; and 925 Major Abdul Rahim bin Haji Adris from the RBLF.
The OBOE Endeavour Award is an academic excellence programme by the Australian government awarded to CSC participants who have achieved outstanding results during the course.
The officers will be invited to Australia to meet senior military officers from the Australian Defence Force, tour selected Australian military bases, participate in educational and cultural activities, and engage in dialogues and discussions. This year’s award recipients will leave for Australia on December 2.
The programme is aimed at imparting knowledge to the officers about Australia, in particular its defence force, discovering commonalities and appreciating differences in the region’s security and interests, as well as fostering the relationship between the two armed forces and enhancing the bilateral defence relations between Brunei Darussalam and Australia. This event is the sixth in the series since it started in 2018. – James Kon
