The Meranti Islands Regency Government of Riau Province signed an MoU with Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta. The agreement was officially signed by the Regent of Meranti Islands Regency H. Muhammad Adil S.H. and the RRector of UNY Prof. Sumaryanto on February 10, 2022.
“Yogyakarta is a student city, and many come to study in this city. Therefore, this MoU is important to nurture smart and skilled Meranti children. Furthermore, we hope that this MoU can support the implementation of various activities, both in the fields of education and research, mentoring, and community development in other sectors,” said H. Muhammad Adil S.H.
Based on a BPS survey, the poverty rate in Meranti was 27.98% during the pandemic, which was the highest in Riau. The local government encourages Meranti to become an advanced, intelligent, and proud area. The Meranti government aims to educate as many as 5000 Meranti residents for the undergraduate degree, 500 people for the master's degree, and 200 people for the doctoral degree. In particular, Meranti needs 500 agricultural graduates, 500 fishery graduates, and 678 teachers. In the health sector, Meranti is currently in need of doctors and attempts to improve the hospital's status from type C to type B.
The Rector of UNY, Prof.Dr. Sumaryanto, M.Kes stated that UNY is ready to help Meranti become a developed and sustainable region. "We will always optimize synergy and collaboration for mutual benefit," said Prof. Sumaryanto.
The scope of potential cooperation to be explored in the future is quite broad. There is a need to cooperate in implementing education for Meranti Islands Regency students (bachelor, master, and doctoral degree), implementing Teacher Profession Program, improving the quality and relevance of learning in partner schools, increasing the competence of high school and vocational school teachers based on entrepreneurship, increasing the competence of principals. Improving human resources through further studies, the placement of integrated community service in the Meranti Islands Regency, and digital-based learning innovations.
