Ford donates RM51k to Sepilok Orang Utan Rehab Centre

Official Press Release from Sime Darby Auto ConneXion

Ford Motor Company, in partnership with local distributor Sime Darby Auto ConneXion Sdn Bhd (AutoConneXion), has donated RM51,000 to the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre (SOURC) near Sandakan, Sabah.

Mr Tom Dickin, South East Asia District Manager from Ford’s Export Division, officially presented the cheque to SOURC representative Dr Senthivel Nathan in a simple ceremony at the centre on 2 Dec 2009.

Representatives of Ford and SOURC at the cheque handover ceremony.

Accompanied by Ms Veemala Rethinasamy, Ford’s National Sales Manager for Malaysia and Mr Ling Ing Kyii, AutoConneXion Branch Manager for Sandakan, he later toured the facility.

“The Export division of Ford Motor Company recently took over responsibility for Malaysia and part of our focus is to support environmental and conservation projects in places where we do business,” said Mr Dickin.

He added, “Ford Grants is a major program for us globally, and we are delighted to contribute in a small way to the excellent work done here at Sepilok by Sylvia and her team. We are working closely with AutoConneXion to identify projects in other parts of Malaysia, which we can support in future.”

Ford Motor Company has been supporting environmental and conservation causes in South East Asia since 2002. Today, Ford Grants is one of the largest programs of its kind in the world. The program evolved from the Henry Ford European Conservation Awards established in Britain in 1983. Over the years, it has received more than 23,000 project submissions and involved more than 125,000 people and organizations in 60 countries throughout Europe, Central and South American, the Caribbean, Asia and the Middle East.

Via the Ford Export Asia Pacific regional office, which covers many export markets in South East Asia, the Ford Grants program has been operating in Laos (5 years) and Cambodia (7 years), supporting causes as diverse as the ordination of novice monks, traditional Khmer poetry and elephant conservation.

Aside from the Ford Grants program, Ford Motor Company actively supports environmental and conservation causes in other countries around the region with donations and special arrangements to purchase support vehicles.  Ford is also proud to actively support the work of Flora and Fauna International across the Asia Pacific region.