KUDAT: For most of the weekdays, Hariyadi and his friends wake up at 5am while it is still dark.
Using flashlights, they trudge through narrow paths up hilly slopes surrounded mostly by jungle.
It is a tiring and treacherous journey that Hariyadi, 10, has to endure to attend school in Pulau Balambangan here.
“We usually walk together to school,” he said, referring to the other children from his village, Kampung Koksimpul.
The distance between Kampung Koksimpul and SK Pulau Balambangan is 6km, a gruelling two-hour walk.
Pupils from three other villages on the remote island do not fare any better.
Those from Kampung Batu Sirih can only make the journey by boat, which takes about 90 minutes.
Most of the time, bad weather, such as heavy rain, blocks the route and prevents the children from attending classes.
“We have 88 students. But only 20 to 40 per cent can come to school,” said headmaster Jeli Asangin.
“There are various factors: weather, distance, fatigue... in fact, many students can only attend school a few times a week as they are too tired to make the journey.”
He said cost was also a major issue as many of the island’s inhabitants worked as fishermen.
For them, having to pay RM2 each time their child takes a boat is a financial burden.
For years, the poor attendance resulted in the school achieving very low scores in Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR), said Jeli.
“In 2015, we tried to solve this by making it easier for our pupils to come to school. So we let the Year Six pupils stay at dormitories.
“We achieved a historic 3.11 per cent improvement in the UPSR passing rate that year. Imagine the impact if we start letting pupils stay in school starting from Year One.”
This was the line of thought that inspired the teachers and parents to initiate plans to build permanent dormitories in the area.
Lacking the funds and manpower, they appealed for help. And Petronas has stepped in as part of its contribution to education and human capital development in Malaysia.
Dubbed the “Rural Daily Hostel” project, Petronas will build dormitories for students in SK Pulau Balambangan and SK Orang Kaya Muda Pakeri in Paloh in Sarawak.
Construction will begin early next year and is expected to be completed in August 2019.
The building at SK Pulau Balambangan will house 120 pupils (60 boys and 60 girls), with facilities including a cafeteria, surau and medical room.
Petronas will fund the construction while the maintenance cost will be handled by the school as well as the Education Ministry.
Petronas group human resource management senior vice-president Datuk Raiha Azni Abdul Rahman said the project was designed to empower people through education.
“(Through education), they can improve their standard of living and make meaningful contributions to their community.
“I hope the pupils will be motivated to work hard and excel in their studies once the facilities are ready,” she said during a trip to the island to inspect the site earmarked for the dormitories.
Located off the northern tip of Borneo, Pulau Balambangan is part of the Tun Mustapha Marine Park, but the island remains largely remote and impoverished.
Jeli said: “I believe that these children, when provided with the facilities and opportunities, can be as academically successful as those from the cities.”
Many, like Hariyadi, are braving the dark and tiring journey for a chance at education.
“I am not really afraid, I have many friends with me,” he said with a shy smile.
Others, like Siti Noraini, 11, have taken up the mantle of guiding future generations towards improving the community.
“I would like to be a teacher,” she said with a smile.