Being an inseparable part of the Indonesia’s unity in diversity, Carrefour believes that the company’s success should not be defined solely by its financial returns. No less important, the success should include the company’s commitment to meeting society’s expectations as a good corporate citizen.
One of the crucial factors being concerned in today’s society is education. Lacking of the basic education in a nation can result in a less competitive generation, particularly in today’s globalization era where competitiveness has become a daily routine. Such phenomenon urged Carrefour to create a program that can benefit children at state primary schools in Indonesia.
As a means of supporting the needs of education in the country, Carrefour has since 2007 been implementing One-Store-One-School (OSOS) program. In other words, each of 45 Carrefour’s outlets nationwide is required to be a patron of one school in surrounding area.
“The assisted school should be state primary school located within the radius of 200 m or the closest one to a Carrefour outlet,” Dian Rahmawati, Carrefour’s corporate social responsibility manager, said.
SDN Penjaringan 10 in Pluit area is a good example of how Carrefour has gotten down to the nitty-gritty of the country’s education problem. Being the assisted school of Carrefour since 2008, the school has gone through some changes. The revamp includes repaint, storage store making and ceramic floor installation.
“The contributions that Carrefour gave in revamping our school mean a lot to the children. Prior to becoming an assisted school of Carrefour, we didn’t have proper facilities to support the education process,” Sarni, the principal of SDN Penjaringan 10, asserted.
Sarni
Sarni, who only goes with one name, admitted that not only is having a proper building school important for a better education process, but the quality of teachers and school’s curriculum should be prioritized as well.
Running with conjunction toward achieving the OSIS program at best, Carrefour includes an array of activities such as book day, e-learning, field trips and teachers’ competition.
To instill a love of reading to children from assisted schools of Carrefour, each respective outlet organizes used-book donation. “The book should be in good condition wherein each outlet donates to the respective assisted school, teachers and students,” Dian explained.
As the role of technology has become an integral part in education realm, Dian further said that Carrefour had included e-learning and computer study in the OSIS program since this year. The program includes using computer program as an educational tool to help children acquire basic knowledge needed at their level.
Aside from sitting in a class, students also need to interact with surroundings outside their school. Carrefour’s assisted schools in general have organized field trips or outbound activities as a part of the school’s learning program.
Expressing her gratitude, Sarni said students from SDN Penjaringan 10 had benefited from the field trips, which have been done monthly since 2008. “Ranging from visiting a museum and Taman Mini to having activities at tea plantation in Bogor, field trips are indeed potential to stimulate our students’ creativity and thinking skills.”
The outbound activities also include visiting the nearest Carrefour outlet. Here students are taught the go green concept of 3R, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. “Students are explained the importance of using green bag available at Carrefour. Made by eco-friendly materials, using the green bag is one way to go green,” Sarni explained.
Participating in such exciting field trips can truly build a memorable experience beyond the confines of school to not only children but also teachers.
Sarni said that the teachers’ competition conducted on December 7 this year in Ancol Recreational Park was very significant for teachers toward building a solid teamwork. “The program was aligned closely to our mission, which is to bind a stronger ties among teachers through creative activities that inspire our minds and leadership skills,” Nasrul, the fourth grade teacher, said.
In line with Nasrul’s opinion, Dian said that teachers’ competition of SDN Penjaringan 10 was more than just a picnic, as teachers were engaged in fun competition like riding on flying fox and climbing.
Acted in harmony with the Carrefour’s networks throughout Indonesia, the OSIS program is indeed part of the Carrefour’s corporate social responsibility programs. “But one should not be confused when interpreting the meaning of CSR. To us, CSR is more than an act of donating. It is a program that contributes to a social change in needed communities,” Dian concluded.
This advertorial is published in The Jakarta Post on Dec. 21, 2009.
