Sime Darby Oils employees spent a family night at Zoo Negara

One hundred Sime Darby Oils employees, along with their family members, pitched their tents inside Zoo Negara and experienced the thrill of spending the family night discovering wildlife in their natural habitat at night.

Mazlinda Mohamed, her husband and all four of her kids, were among the participants that came to the zoo for the night camp which they found to be an enjoyable and rewarding experience.  

“My children are great animal lovers. It was a wonderful experience for them, they had a great time. As a parent, I feel it is my responsibility to educate my children about the importance of wildlife conservation and environmental awareness. This opportunity to learn more about the animals in an up-close environment provided invaluable animal experiences for my children.

“Besides learning about the animal kingdom through fun and interactive activities, we were able to spend quality family time together and strengthen our bond.

“We had such an awesome time and I’m thankful for this wonderful experience as it is definitely one the fondest family memories that we will absolutely cherish.”

The 2D1N Zoo Night Camp is a family friendly event by Zoo Negara which aims to promote the understanding of wildlife and its ecosystems through an informal setting to the younger generation.

Sime Darby Oils (SDO), a partner to Zoo Negara’s animal adoption program, had taken the initiative to introduce this wonderful experience to its employees recently.

Through the zoo camp experience, SDO hopes that it would not only enrich their employees’ lives but also instill environmental awareness and higher appreciation towards wildlife.

“We believe that developing a sense of responsibility to protect and conserve mother nature needs to start from an early age. For Sime Darby Oils, what better way than to inculcate this to our own employees and their families.

“Through this wonderful opportunity, we encourage our staff to spend time with their children and explore this learning experience together. We hope other young Malaysians will also take this opportunity to appreciate and learn more about wildlife and the conservation of their habitats through this meaningful camp,” said SDO managing director Mohd Haris Mohd Arshad.

In line with the Zoo Night Camp’s slogan ‘A Learning Experience Through Wildlife’, SDO employees and their families experienced a number of exciting educational activities that revolved around the animals.  

The Night Walk activity was one of the main highlights for the camp as participants were able to get a glimpse of the nocturnal animals roaming around at night guided by an experienced tour leader.

Most of the animals in Zoo Negara are species that can be found in the equatorial rainforest in Malaysia, and participants had the chance to observe these nocturnal animals with the help of night vision monocular provided during the tour. Other highlights included Zoo Explorer activity, campfire, multi-animal showcase and visit to the Giant Panda Conservation Centre.

At the end of the night camp, Zoo Negara’s council member, Mohd Rosdi Ibrahim, who is the chairman of education, presented certificate of participation to all participants. Present was Sime Darby Oils head of corporate services Shahrizan Aini Shamsul Khalil.

On July this year, Sime Darby Oils adopted a Malayan tiger and two Sumatran orangutans, both officially critically endangered species, through Zoo Negara’s wildlife sponsorship programme.

The adoption is a part of the company’s CSR initiatives to raise awareness on animal conservation.

Sime Darby Oils is a fully owned subsidiary of Sime Darby Plantation Berhad, and is involved in trading, manufacturing as well as sales and marketing of oils and fats products, palm oil-based biodiesel, nutraceuticals and other derivatives.

As the world’s largest producer of Certified Sustainable Palm Oil (CSPO), Sime Darby Oils practices a zero-waste process in the extraction of tocotrienols and the production of Malaysia’s palm oil products.