An ancient Sanskrit prayer once said, “Lead me from darkness to light, from ignorance to knowledge, from death to immortality.”

Deepavali, the Festival of Lights, embodies this timeless invocation for wisdom and renewal, symbolising the triumph of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance, and hope over despair. Traditionally, families and communities come together to celebrate new beginnings, spreading joy and positivity.

At Sunway, we draw inspiration from these timeless values as we balance tradition with innovation. Just as Deepavali brings light into homes, we are committed to bringing progress to our communities, using technology and forward-thinking ideas to improve lives. Through our digital transformation journey, we continue to uplift communities and create lasting impact, paving the way for a brighter future for generations to come.

Bringing Light to the Underserved

As part of our initiative under the #SunwayforGood umbrella, our Deepavali celebrations reflect our commitment to uplifting underserved communities, regardless of race, religion, or creed. In 2024, we’ve reached more than 6,400 beneficiaries across Malaysia through our festive cheer – and we continue to strive towards positively impacting millions more in the years to come.

This Festival of Lights, we hosted a joyful celebration for some 100 children and 21 caretakers from six homes in Penang at Sunway Carnival Mall and Sunway Hotel Seberang Jaya. The event was a vibrant and meaningful occasion, filled with warmth and laughter.

The six participating homes – Shan’s Children Home, Pusat Jagaan Sinar Ceria, Sunshine Cottage, Persatuan Kebajikan Shammah, Sekolah Sinar Harapan Bukit Mertajam, and Pertubuhan Penyayang Chin Yun – enjoyed a fun and memorable day of activities, including a lucky draw, henna hand painting, clown performances, shopping and photobooth sessions.

Each home will also receive groceries worth RM1,500 over the next two months, easing the burden of the caretakers. The children will also receive school bags along with Vitamin C tablets, courtesy of Sunway Multicare Pharmacy. We have partnered with POPULAR Bookstore to gift stationeries for the little ones, which was made possible through a RM2,000 cash voucher sponsorship. Additionally, PADINI has generously gifted a 30% discount on selected items for purchases made for the children, adding extra joy to this season of giving.

Our Deepavali cheer extends beyond Penang, reaching underprivileged families across Malaysia. In Pahang, we sponsored a shopping spree to help families prepare for the festive season. Additionally, we partnered with the Malaysian Red Crescent and Kechara Soup Kitchen to distribute groceries and aid to B40 families and charitable organisations across Perak, Selangor, Melaka, Johor, and Penang. MRC has also helped distribute groceries to Persatuan Kebajikan Thirumular Malaysia in Selangor and B40 families in Johor, while Kechara Soup Kitchen delivered a helping hand towards more than 100 families in Penang, Perak and Melaka.

More than just a Buzzword

Sunway founder and chairman Tan Sri Sir Dr. Jeffrey Cheah expressed his confidence in the long-term strategic partnership with Huawei on Sunway’s continuous journey of digital transformation.

Rooted in Hindu culture and mythology, Deepavali also symbolises the triumph of knowledge over ignorance. In keeping with this spirit, we are committed to empowering communities through innovation, education and sustainability.

In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, innovation is essential to solving real-world challenges and advancing our community’s progress. Our partnership with Huawei Malaysia is set to harness the synergies of both Huawei’s capabilities and our business divisions to build smart and sustainable Sunway townships.

Through this collaboration, both parties aim to harness their strengths to drive digital services and co-build partnerships across the entire Sunway ecosystem. This includes a data-to-value programme, which will create a data lake using Huawei’s Big Data platform to support our strategy and roadmap. Additionally, a Smart Townships Development programme will establish a strong ICT infrastructure for rolling out smart technologies across our townships, including those in the Borneo states. In expanding new digital capabilities, we will focus on Smart PV, battery energy storage, hyper-scale data centres, and integrated green solutions for homes, offices, and industrial parks.

We also entered a tripartite partnership with Huawei and ChargeSini to develop more electric vehicle (EV) charging stations at Sunway-owned premises, commercial buildings and residences nationwide.

Under this collaboration, Sunway will provide the EV infrastructure through our Trading & Manufacturing arm; Huawei Malaysia will serve as the technology advisor; and ChargeSini, one of the largest EV solutions provider in Malaysia, will manage the operations of these EV charging stations.

This improves the availability and accessibility of the EV charging infrastructure in the country, aligned with the Malaysian government’s National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR), which aims to set up 10,000 stations by 2025.

Every Step Counts

42 Malaysia, our nation-building initiative supported by Sunway Education Group, Jeffrey Cheah Foundation and Khazanah Nasional, is expanding beyond its first campus in Sunway City Kuala Lumpur to Johor, Penang and Sarawak, offering free computer science education to individuals over 18, irrespective of background or skills.

42 Malaysia also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with MyDIGITAL Corporation, an agency under the Ministry of Digital, to develop the nation’s digital talent landscape, particularly in the fields of cloud computing, cybersecurity and artificial intelligence. This supports the nation’s goal to fill 12,000 cybersecurity positions and create 500,000 new digital economy jobs by 2025.

By exposing students to the world of coding, Code4TheFuture aims to inspire and empower the next generation of tech-savvy individuals.

While innovation and knowledge are often associated with technology, they are just as critical when it comes to upskilling our communities. Our Code4TheFuture initiative aims to provide refugee communities with access to digital tools and education. Led by dedicated student volunteers from 42KL and refugee learning centre Fugee School, the initiative exposed a total of 70 refugee students to the world of coding. Through its comprehensive approach, the initiative equipped them with technical knowledge and valuable skills for the future.

Planting Seeds for an Innovative Future

Sunway XFarms aims to create a stronger and more resilient food and agritech ecosystem by first educating our future generation with the things they can do to live sustainably.

At Sunway, innovation and sustainability go hand in hand. As the population continues to increase, so will the need for urban spaces. Established in 2020, Sunway XFarms grows planet-friendly and nutritious produce comprising salad lettuces, Asian greens, fruits and herbs in sustainable smart farms.

In 2022, we expanded to Sunway Tower in Kuala Lumpur City Centre, becoming the largest indoor vertical farm in the area. Spanning 37,000 square feet across three floors, we produce over 13,000kg of fresh, nutritious and pesticide-free vegetables monthly. Sustainably grown, we leverage precision technologies and use 90% less water than traditional farming, allowing us to yield ten times more produce with less than 5% on-farm wastage, contributing to a sustainable future.

Our commitment to innovation is driven by our mission to generate real-world solutions for progress. This Deepavali, we honour the festive traditions while embracing innovation to uplift our communities. We remain steadfast in our digital transformation journey as we strive to create a lasting impact for generations to come.

Happy Deepavali from all of us at Sunway!