Karim Family Foundation Donates S$2 Million Towards Financial Aid

Published on 27 February 2023

Singapore, 27 February 2023 (Monday) – The Karim Family Foundation, established by the family of Bachtiar Karim and Dewi Sukwanto, has made a generous endowed contribution of S$2,000,000 to set up the Karim Family Foundation Scholarship at the Singapore Management University (SMU). This gift is the single largest alumni gift to SMU and was initiated by SMU Alumni Cindy Karim (BBM, 2014) and Chayadi Karim (BBM, 2015) – children of Bachtiar Karim and Dewi Sukwanto, Principals of the Karim Family Foundation.

Having completed their undergraduate education at SMU, siblings Cindy and Chayadi enjoyed tremendous growth and learning during their term and sought to give back to the experience that helped shaped them.

Alumni siblings Cindy Karim and Chayadi Karim said, “We experienced some of the most formative years of our lives during our time at SMU and in Singapore, and we count ourselves very fortunate to be able to help provide this same opportunity to other aspiring Indonesian undergraduates. Our hope is for the Karim Family Foundation scholars to be able to experience that same University education as we did, to be able to focus intently on their studies and participate in everything that University life has to offer, without having to worry about their finances.”

Professor Lily Kong, SMU President said, “I am delighted to receive this significant and meaningful gift towards education from our very own alumni. SMU’s interactive pedagogy has always focused on developing graduates who are not only intelligent, capable and confident individuals, but also individuals driven by a desire to positively impact humanity. This is what our alumni, Cindy and Chayadi Karim, have enabled through the Karim Family Foundation Scholarship. My hope is that others in our alumni community will be inspired by the impact of their generosity and will consider the many ways they too can impact current and future generations of SMU students.”

Together with the accompanying matching grant from MOE, this brings the Karim Family Foundation Scholarship to a total endowment fund value of $2.7 million. The bond-free Scholarship aims to support full-time undergraduates from Indonesia or of Indonesian ethnicity with demonstrated financial needs to achieve academic excellence and to recognise them for their accomplishments in student life and towards community outreach. Valued at S$80,000, the Scholarship will provide each recipient with S$20,000 per year for their four years of study. The Scholarship will be awarded annually and in perpetuity, commencing in Academic Year 2023/2024. By Academic Year 2026/2027, there will be a steady stream of four scholars every year.

More information on the Karim Family Foundation Scholarship can be found here.