Press Release For Immediate Release 8 February 2001
Malaysians Sent As United Nations Volunteers to East Timor Kuala Lumpur – The Asia-Pacific Information Development Programme (APDIP) in collaboration with Yayasan Salam Malaysia (SALAM) have identified three IT volunteers from Malaysia to assist in the Internet Network For The Reconstruction Programme in East Timor which is implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in East Timor. This initiative is an example of the work being done by volunteers around the world and highlighted by the UN International Year of Volunteers. The three volunteers, Mr. Abdullah Zainol Abidin, Mr. Ganeswaran Krishnaratnam and Mr. Nyanaprakash Muniandy will be there for a period of up to one year. This venture is a collaborative programme between SALAM, APDIP and UNDP that aims to use the services, technical knowledge and experiences of volunteers in contributing to the development of the Information Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure and human capacity of East Timor. Zainol Abidin and Krishnaratnam will assist in the establishment and management of a training center in East Timor. Muniandy will join the UNDP Internet Network For Development project team and provide technical assistance to the maintenance of the Internet Service. Further, the volunteers will assist in the development of the curriculum and provide “hands-on” training. The programme will aim to develop capacity of the East Timorese so that there is a pool of local skills in the future to run ICT projects in East Timor. APDIP seeks to promote and establish information technology (IT) for social and economic development throughout Asia-Pacific. APDIP is a project funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and implemented by the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS), Asia office. The Malaysian Volunteers will be working closely with other volunteers from around the world to develop the Internet services in East Timor.
For further information, visit the APDIP website at www.apdip.net or the UNDP website at www.undp.org (UNDP Malaysia at www.undp.org.my or the SALAM website at www.salam.org.my
Note to editor: Biodata of volunteers: i. Abdullah Zainol Abidin Abdullah currently is an IT executive in a major fast food chain listed in the stock exchange. He has established and helped maintain the IT resource center of the company. He has helped design the curriculum as well as conducted training for the employees. He graduated from ITM. To become a volunteer, Abdullah will be resigning from his current position. He will be involved in the training center. Ganeswaran Krishnaratnam Ganesh graduated from Alberta, Canada. He has taught extensively not only in Malaysia but also in Seychelles. He will be involved in the training center. Nyanaprakash a/l Muniandy Prakash has extensive experience in system support. He has experience in networking and trouble-shooting. Currently, he is a consultant and will be taking time off from work to serve the community in East Timor to assist them in communicating better among themselves and with the outside world. He has been chosen to be a United Nations Volunteer.
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Yayasan Salam is committed to the East Timor situation. Based upon the request of Xanana Gusamo, President of the National Council of East Timor Resistance (CNRT) during his visit to Malaysia, SALAM on behalf of the Malaysian people, sent a container of educational materials, food and clothing on 28 April 2000. To promote micro-credit, five women leaders from East Timor were trained in Malaysia for one month from 15 October to 15 November 2000. The training programme was financed by the Malaysian Training Cooperation Programme (MTCP) of the Prime Minister’s Department and conducted by Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia. (Please refer attachment for further information on SALAM) For more information visit www.salam.org.my
APDIP, Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme, seeks to promote and establish information technology (IT) for social and economic development throughout Asia-Pacific. Launched in 1997 and based in Kuala Lumpur, the Programme serves 42 countries in a vast region, from Iran in the west, north to Mongolia and south to the Pacific Islands of Fiji. APDIP assists developing countries to bridge the digital divide and to benefit from the global information infrastructure in numerous ways. It provides advice to nations formulating national IT policies and offers hands-on technical assistance. APDIP is funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and implemented by the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS), Asia office. For more information visit www.apdip.net UNDP is part of the United Nations and upholds the vision of the United Nations Charter. It is committed to the principle that development is inseparable from the quest for peace and human security and that the United Nations must be a strong force for development as well as peace. UNDP's mission is to help countries in their efforts to achieve sustainable human development by assisting them to build their capacity to design and carry out development programmes in good governance, poverty eradication and sustainable livelihoods while ensuring the mainstreaming of cross-cutting issues such as gender equality, protection and regeneration of the environment and HIV/AIDS. UNDP has permanent representation in over 50 countries in the world. Through its Resident Coordinator System, UNDP ensures a coordinated and concerted intervention of all UN agencies and international cooperation at the national level in pursuit of sustainable human development. also acts to help the United Nations family to become a unified and powerful force for sustainable human development and works to strengthen international cooperation for sustainable human development. For more information on UNDP visit www.undp.org or www.undp.org.my The United Nations Volunteers are providing hands-on assistance for peace and development in nearly 150 countries. UNV works through UNDP country offices to coordinate volunteers' activities and promote the ideals of volunteerism around the world. (Refer attached document)
For more information on the UNV, contact Nanette Braun at nanette.braun@unv.org or Richard Nyberg at Richard.nyberg@unv.org at the United Nations Volunteers or visit the UN website at www.un.org
Prepared for Yayasan Salam Malaysia by UNDP. For further information, contact Mr Paul Selva Raj, Executive Director of Yayasan Salam Malaysia. 8, Jalan Utara, 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Tel: 03 7958 4021 Fax: 03 7958 4031.