VICE-CHANCELLOR JOINS IN THE FUN AT THE TREE PLANTING CAMPAIGN

UUM ONLINE: In conjunction with Universiti Utara Malaysia's 31st Convocation Fair which will take place from 8 until 15 November 2018, the Petronas Student Residential Hall (Inasis) organised the sandalwood seedling planting programme in a bid to foster environmental awareness amongst campus denizens.

The programme called, "Plant A Tree Campaign" which was conducted around the grounds of the Petronas Inasis also saw the participation of students from various Inasis who got down and dirty planting a total of 1000 sandalwood seedlings.

Also in attendance were the Vice- Chancellor, Prof. Dr. Ahmad Bashawir Abdul Ghani; Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Student Affairs and Alumni), Prof. Dr Abdul Malek Abdul Karim; Registrar, Mr. Baharudin Yaacob; Director of Student Affairs Department, Dr. Mohd Dino Khairri Shariffuddin and principals of the various Inasis.

Sandalwood is a highly sought after plant in the rainforest of this country. Its bark and resins are in high demand in the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries.

This tree is important for the production of agarwood oil and the wood itself. Sandalwood of the best grade and quality can fetch more than MYR15,000 per kilogram while the price of sandalwood oil can reach MYR50,000 per kilogram in the market.