Watching her three beloved children grow older, Joy developed one deep, burning desire: giving them the best possible opportunities in life. She was already coping with several different jobs, but deep down she knew: education is the key. Almost secretly, she decided to leave her hometown Iloilo and set off to Singapore.
Written by: Vittoria O.
Khan Mai, born and raised in Myanmar, attended university via distant learning and worked as a kindergarten and primary school teacher. But with eight siblings, her family struggled to make ends meet. So she packed her bags and set off to Singapore to provide for her family.
Written by: Vittoria O.
Launched at the end of 2014, the Aidha Alumni Development Programme (ADP) is designed to provide continued support to Aidha graduates. We catch up with two of our ADP alumni to find out how their business plans are progressing.
Written by: Kate Sheperd
Wiwik Sunariyah’s student life in Indonesia was not exactly the carefree days people usually imagine a student’s life to be. Her family was struggling with a heavy financial burden. When there isn’t enough food on your plate, school fees, books and uniforms are not the top priority. As the eldest of six siblings, Wiwik felt a great responsibility to make a change. One day, she swallowed her fears and set off to Singapore in search of better luck.
Written By: Vittoria O.
In 2006, Irawati left Jakarta with a clear goal in mind — to provide her family with financial security and to secure a better future for herself. Several obstacles stood between her and her success — her poor English, fear of failing at her new job and unbearable homesickness.
Written By: Vittoria O
Next month, a brand-new hostel will open in the city of Semarang, Central Java. With well-lit and modern rooms, this centre is for students, industry workers and commuters from nearby areas, offering them a place to relax and feel at home. The mind and heart behind this promising business is Radliyah, a brave and determined woman who dreamed about opening a hostel and turned that dream into reality after she enrolled in Aidha.
“And the third prize at the second annual Migrant Worker Poetry Competition goes to…Sharasyamsi!”
Congratulations to Aidha student Sharasyamsi for doing us proud! This is the first time that the poetry competition allowed women to participate, and a whopping 65% of the entries came from women. Four Aidha students made the shortlist, with Sharasyamsi winning third prize with her poem “Engkau”, or “You”.
As we begin a new year at Aidha, it’s the perfect time to reflect on some of the programmes which began in 2015 and which will help to shape the lives of our students for years to come.. These include the Alumni Development Programme (ADP), piloted in January 2015, and the Basic English Classes, which began in October 2015.
by: Sandhya Sriram
Training for a full marathon is not for the faint-hearted, so it may come as a surprise that four runners currently in training for the December 6th Standard Chartered Marathon in Singapore are associated with Aidha. Despite their full-time work schedules, these athletes manage to train for long-distance running. What inspires them to do it? Meet our super-disciplined runners: Aidha alumni Janelyn (Jannah), Mel, and Delia; and Amy, a 2015 M1 batch member.
By: Aarati Rajwade and Miin Hwang
by Aditi Saxena and Ting Claravall
Last May, we featured the story of Aidha graduate and trainee, Tri Utami, who was departing Singapore for good to begin a new chapter of her life. Tri had been planning to open an English Learning Group and a few weeks ago, we checked back with her to see how things were coming along…
