BRUNEI representatives at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Youth Summit this year vowed to help Brunei realise its 2035 Vision.
Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) students Mohd Khairul Azmi Hj Mohd Salleh, 22, and Farhan Azama, 21, had the opportunity to represent the country in the recently concluded APEC Youth Summit held at Vladivostok, Russia.
For both of them, the opportunity was a step to helping the nation realise its Brunei Vision 2035.
“We emphasise the importance of Vision 2035, that’s what we’ve been telling people at the Summit, we want to make sure we can achieve this,” said Mohd Khairul Azmi.
He said that Brunei’s impression to the rest of the world being “just a small, rich country” should not remain so.
“We should be regarded as the more educated, more open-minded people…we should not just be seen as consumers anymore,” he said, adding that there are a lot of young people in Brunei with the potential of being great leaders in the future.
During the summit, Mohd Khairul Azmi, a major in Sociology and Anthropology, represented Brunei in the United Nations committee where he highlighted the importance of student exchanges in education to help young people gain understanding of other countries in this age of globalisation.
“It’s really important to know other people’s culture and understand their perspectives..and we bring those perspectives back into our own country, so this can help us benefit one another.”
Farhan, who majors in Environmental Studies, represented the country in the Energy committee during the Summit. During the summit, he made a proposal to create more public awareness of natural resources and for the innovation of green technology to create sustainable energy.
“In Brunei, we are very dependent on oil and gas, so I proposed for us to diversify our industries, and look for more energy efficient alternatives,” he told The Brunei Times.
Both young ambassadors at the APEC Youth Summit hoped that by 2035, Brunei will reach the same status as Singapore in terms of having self-sufficient economy and being a hub of trade in Southeast Asia.
“As youths, we need to make sure that we know where we are and where we will be in the future. So that we know where we will stand in 2035,” said Mohd Khairul Azmi.
Both representatives attended the APEC Youth Summit from September 2 to 4, meeting with youth delegates from other countries to discuss issues on food security, transportation, education and energy. The Brunei Times
Source: Brunei Times
Author: Low Leng Mey
Published Date: 13 September 2012