News By Mohd Azri Abdul Aziz

Photos By Amierul Husniey Che Abd Rahman

CIAC and LTA Collaborate Successfully on USR and KTP Programs in Langkawi Island

The Centre for International Affairs and Cooperation (CIAC) ALONG with inbound mobility students of semester A231 (first semester, session 2023/2024), full-time international students, representatives of the UUM Global Buddies Club, representatives of the UUM International Student Society (ISS) and visiting staff of the West University of Timișoara have successfully implemented the University Social Responsibility (USR) and Knowledge Transfer Program (KPT) in Langkawi Island. The programs were carried out in collaboration with the Langkawi Tourism Academy@Kolej Komuniti Langkawi (LTA).

40 UUM delegates were warmly welcomed by Madam Haslinda Abd Hamid, the Director of LTA. She stated, "We are delighted to host the UUM delegation and hope that this collaboration will continue in the future."

The USR program at LTA involved the construction of woodball fairways as part of LTA's preparation to host the national-level woodball competition which is scheduled on 2-3 March 2024. It is expected that community colleges throughout Malaysia will participate in this woodball competition. "I had never known or heard about the woodball game before. My friends and I also had the opportunity to try this challenging game. It was a first-time experience and new knowledge gained through the program organised by CIAC and LTA," said Mr. Yonis Abdikadir Gurhan, a first-semester student in the Bachelor of Science with Honours in Information Technology program from the School of Computing and a citizen of Somalia.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Norliza Katuk, the Deputy Director (Global Engagement) at CIAC and the Lecturer from the School of Computing, who led the UUM delegation, expressed her gratitude for the collaboration opportunity provided by LTA. "Programs like these are meant to expose mobility and international students to local communities, enhancing their opportunities for interaction to understand the local language, culture and cuisine. It will be established as an annual program by CIAC for international students."

Simultaneously, Associate Prof. Dr. Norliza Katuk conducted a separate session on the KTP entitled “ChatGPT” for Small Businesses. 15 participants who are local small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) entrepreneurs and LTA staff, registered for the KTP program that was held at the Computer Laboratory, LTA. This KTP program aimed to provide exposure to ChatGPT and intended to apply the use of ChatGPT in their respective businesses.

Mr. Rizal Jasman, the Manager of Uniqraft Works and a batik business company in Langkawi Island, mentioned that he had never been aware of the functions and benefits of ChatGPT. He expressed gratitude for participating in the KTP session which was jointly-organised by UUM and LTA, as the knowledge gained was valuable and could assist in day-to-day business operations.

CIAC looks forward to more collaborative opportunities with LTA in the future.