Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The pre-departure reception of Chevening Awards 2018, congratulating 68 Indonesians and 6 Timorese graduate school students who will shortly depart for the UK to study under the Chevening Scholarship programme, took place at British Embassy Jakarta on Tuesday night.

"This is an investment for Indonesia`s future. This is an investment for your future," British Ambassador to Indonesia, ASEAN, and Timor-Leste, Moazzam Malik, stated in his remarks before the scholarship recipients.

He added that Indonesia is a country of enormous potential and the Chevening Scholarship programme, funded by Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) of the UK Government, is "one of the best ways" to support Indonesia in terms of bettering the nation`s human resources.

According to the ambassador, the Chevening programme has seen significant growth over recent years, and the number of recipients in 2018 represents a nearly 10 percent increase in scholarships this year.

Malik remarked that the recipients can build their country and become leaders in their fields. He mentioned the names of several prominent Indonesian figures who were previous scholarship recipients, in order to reaffirm UK`s support of Indonesia through the Chevening programme.

These included Helianti Hilman, the founder of the sustainable Indonesian business Javara; M. Imdadun Rahmat, the head of National Commission on Human Rights (KOMNAS HAM); and Yanuar Nugroho, a member of the Indonesian Presidential Staff Offices (KSP).

One of the awardees, Elfa Nugraha, noted that being a part of Chevening programme introduces her to a vast network of amazing people, both in Indonesia and abroad. She will begin her Master of Business Administration programme in the University of Cambridge this September.

According to the official website of Chevening, the scholarships have been awarded to individuals with exceptional leadership potential and strong academic backgrounds annually since 1983. The scholarship offers comprehensive financial support to study for a one-year master`s degree at UK universities.

Chevening marked a special moment this year as the global network of Chevening Alumni reached 50 thousand members.

Applications for 2018 Scholarships opened on Aug 6 and will close on Nov 8, 2018.


Reporting by Chi Jo-yao
Editing by Azizah Fitriyanti, Yosep Hariyadi

Reporter: Antara
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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