WHEN Professor Dr Mahendhiran Sanggaran Nair, currently Pro-Vice-Chancellor(Research and Sustainability), at Sunway University first visited the Desa Mentari flats known as Project Perumahan Rakyat (PPR), occupied by residents from the B-40 community, his first thoughts were to transform the community through student-led initiatives.
Over three years, from 2022, the public housing scheme, located along the Federal Highway in Klang Valley, has been part of a community initiative led by 1800 Sunway university students. They are supported by the Tan Sri Sir Dr Jeffrey Cheah Foundation. Community service has also successfully been embedded into the course curriculum for the university.
“The Sunway students are privileged to receive a good education. However, I believe with privilege comes responsibility, and with their education and opportunities, they too can make a difference in improving the lives of vulnerable and disadvantaged communities, especially when they are located so close to Sunway University,” he said.
The scenes of poverty and poor living standards coupled with the deplorable state of the buildings galvanised Mahendhiran and his Sunway team into preparing a blueprint for the sustainable development of the Desa Mentari flats and its occupants, giving them opportunities in education, creating green and safe spaces, encouraging sports and social cohesion and finally to make a positive impact on the community.
Fast forward to 2025, the Sunway Desa Mentari Community Development Programme today has helped transform the community of more than 26,000 residents, where households earn less then RM5000, into resilient communities through various youth skills development programmes. Plans for equipping children and youth with ICT skills, financial literacy, language communication, culinary arts and food safety, basic coding and AI literacy, will emsure their confidence and self-estem improves with time.
There is also in the pipeline new initiatives such as a community mobile library providing reading materials and literacy support for the children in the community, as well as an urban farm educational programme, fostering awareness on food production. This is laying the groundwork for a more resilient empowered community who can grow their own food for consumption.
“I took Sunway President, Professor Dr Sibrandes Poppema and other university leaders to visit Desa Mentari, and the community leaders from Desa Mentari gave us a 20-page document highlighting the challenges they faced.
Both Sibrandes and Tan Sri Sir Dr Jeffrey Cheah are supportive of working with the community.
“We are also mindful that the Desa Mentari community could teach our students and academics how to design effective teaching, learning and research tools for community development programmes.
“These initiatives will also provide a window of opportunity to help policy-makers, government agencies and non-governmental organisations find effective ways to address the needs of urban poor communities.
“A key feature of the Sunway Desa Mentari programme is to provide the community, especially the youth, with education, capability development and mentorship that empowers them to chart their own journey.
“If we do not address these issues and challenges faced by the community of Desa Mentari, the youth will be influenced by other negative social ills,” said Mahendhiran, who credits his father with having instilled in him the importance of a good education and its long term benefits.
“Education is a key component in uplifting any B-40 community.”
