In conjunction with the annual Hari Gawai Dayak festival, AEON CO. (M) BHD. hosted a memorable event with the Dayak community of Rumah Panjang REDEEMS Centre in an effort to uphold the local culture, foster relations and strengthen the bond with the local community.

AEON in collaboration with the local community organized an initiative that was designed to promote a tight and healthy relationship with society, which is also in tandem with AEON’s community engagement programme that is aimed at strengthening relationship with the local community where they operate in.

Over 5,000 locals from the Rumah Panjang REDEEMS Centre participated in a one-day cultural programme that showcased a colorful display of culture, heritage, arts and traditional games, besides the sumptuous local delicacies with the involvement of kids and adults.

The harvest festival is an integral part of Sarawak’s Dayak community, as the festival is a mark of thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest, which echoes AEON’s sentiment to acknowledge the contributions and hard work of the locals, and usher a more abundant farming season for many more years to come.

The memorable celebrations kicked-off at the Rumah Panjang REDEEMS Centre in Singai, Bau, Kuching where a large-scale gotong-royong was conducted to clean up and spruce the surrounding area to foster a healthier living at the ‘rumah panjang’. Members from AEON aided in the clean up before helping with the preparing and cooking of food for the entire day as well.

As the event progressed, the locals were greeted to a cooking and coloring competition with members of AEON. The celebrations began with an exquisite performance from the REDEEMS Center, as a traditional game of Bola Dangdut was played followed by a Gong performance.

General Manager of AEON CO. (M) BHD. Mr Thong Poh Wah said, “We are truly grateful to be able to be part of this rich heritage and celebration with this charming community. We at AEON will continue to aspire and strive to integrate ourselves into the local culture and to further build our relationships with the community as we will always do our best to work alongside the locals to honor and preserve their culture and traditions.”

Kanak-Kanak Cilik AEON between the ages of seven to twelve years old were part of the celebrations as they came all dressed in traditional attire to participate in a fashion show. This was followed by a dazzling performance by REDEEMS Center. The celebration ended with the Miss AEON 2019 beauty pageant which was then followed by a prize giving ceremony and an entertaining session of karaoke.

YBhg. Datuk Peter Nansian, President of REDEEMS said, “We are truly honored to have AEON in joining us during this auspicious Hari Gawai celebrations this year to celebrate with our community. Gawai represents us and is a major celebration in this part of the country. With the presence of AEON in Sarawak, our communities have been enabled with the opportunities created that has helped us in many ways. On behalf of the REDEEMS Center, I would like to thank AEON for taking this step to promote the culture, their unwavering and continuous support in making this festival a success.”

At the festival, the Malaysian AEON Foundation (MAF), the charity arm under AEON CO. (M) BHD. took the opportunity to contribute to help ease the financial burdens of single mothers from the neighboring villages.