Miri community invited to Curtin Malaysia’s iFest

Miri – 15 May 2019 – Members of the public in Miri are invited to join the festivities at the International Festival (iFest) being held at the campus of Curtin University Malaysia (Curtin Malaysia) this Saturday, 18 May 2019.

Organised by Curtin Malaysia’s International Students Association (ISA) in collaboration with the Curtin Malaysia Student Council, and supported by the Sarawak Tourism Board and local businesses, the event will kick off with an opening ceremony and showcases of the international students’ countries from 5 pm. This will include colourful booths featuring the handicrafts, food and national landmarks of the various countries.

This will be followed by a flash mob, cultural fashion show, stage performances and ‘colour fest’ from 7pm to 10 pm.

Themed ‘World without Borders’, iFest 2019 will be a celebration of the cultural diversity and spirit of inclusiveness at Curtin Malaysia, which has a campus community of over 4,000 students from over 50 different countries, and over 400 staff from about 15 nations.

The annual event has been organised annually since 2004 and this year’s is being held in conjunction with Curtin Malaysia’s 20th anniversary this year.

According to ISA president and iFest 2019 organising chairman Saqib Ahmed Khan, the iFest is one of the university’s biggest annual events, attracting more than a thousand visitors each year. In addition to promoting multiculturalism and international understanding among Curtin Malaysia’s students and staff, it is also meant to be an occasion to build cultural ties with the local community.

In addition, the event serves as a platform for the university’s international students to demonstrate their national pride through the various activities.

“As part of our university’s 20th anniversary celebrations this year, we hope the local public will come and experience what a vibrant, multicultural community we are,” Saqib added.

He said members of the public can expect cultural displays by students from Australia, China, Indonesia, Philippines, Pakistan, Thailand, Zimbabwe and a number of Middle Eastern countries, among others.

Curtin Malaysia Pro-Chancellor Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr George Chan,Curtin Malaysia’s management committee Datuk Lee Kim Shin, and Curtin Malaysia Pro Vice-Chancellor, President and Chief Executive Professor Mienczakowski are expected to attend the event opening.

Professor Mienczakowski commented that the iFest is also a celebration of Curtin Malaysia’s role as an internationally-focused university and part of a wider global university that is ranked among the top one percent of universities worldwide in the 2018 Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU).

He said this international focus at Curtin Malaysia and Curtin’s other campuses in Australia, Singapore, Dubai and Mauritius has resulted in Curtin University being ranked the 26th most international university in the world, and the second-most international university in Australia in 2016 by Times Higher Education.

The ISA is the representative and support organisation for Curtin Malaysia’s international students, operating in partnership with the Curtin Malaysia Student Council and various areas of the university. It aims to ensure that the welfare of the international students are well taken care of, and that they get the best out of the university’s unique international and cross-cultural learning environment.

To know more about the ISA, visit its Facebook page (internationalsa2019) and Instagram (official_isacurtin2019).

iFest 2019 on 18 May a celebration of the cultural diversity and spirit of inclusiveness at Curtin Malaysia.

International students to showcase their countries’ culture, food and more during iFest 2019.