Prizes for cleanliness, health and safety
THIRTY to forty percent of Malaysian children aged one to 10 are not getting the right nutrition, with one in five being overweight or obese, an independent survey conducted by Dutch Lady in 2013 found.
With over 19,000 children surveyed, the study further found that a high percentage of children are vitamin D deficient and have low levels of physical activities.
With that in mind, Dutch Lady Malaysia recently held the 3K (cleanliness, health and safety) Awards
and MyDMBS (Drink.Move.Be Strong) to educate and recognise primary and secondary school students’ efforts to improve the quality of their surroundings to boost fitness levels, while emphasising on cleanliness, health and safety.
Organised by the Education Ministry, the annual national school awards programme started in 1991.
The programme was temporarily halted in 2009 and relaunched in 2015 with Dutch Lady Malaysia as the ministry’s strategic partner.
Deputy Education Minister Teo Nie Ching said the programme is designed to impact students’ development, schools’ physical environment, academic performances and students’ attendance.
“The 3K Awards is further strengthened with the MyDMBS campaign, an initiative by Dutch Lady Malaysia to prevent the transmission of non-communicable diseases among students, increase their awareness on the benefits of consuming nutrients like milk and encourage students to do physical activities.
“This year, 200 primary and secondary schools participated in the 3K Awards and MyDMBS campaign, with the involvement of 200,000 students and 10,000 teachers,” she said at the award ceremony on Wednesday.
Teo hoped more schools would get involved as the 3K concept is important.
Dutch Lady Malaysia managing director Tarang Gupta said the quality of entries for the programme this year was “impressive”.
“It’s a sign that overall, students’ performances and health awareness have improved,” he added.
SJK (C) Lai Meng, Kuala Lumpur and SMK Convent Kedah were crowned champions of the 3K Awards programme under the primary and secondary school category respectively.
Both schools walked home with a cash prize of RM5,000 each.
The MyDMBS campaign saw SK Kijal Terengganu and SMK Puncak Alam 3 walk home as winners, under the primary and secondary school category respectively.
Both schools received a cash prize of RM1,500 each.