REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, CENTRAL LOMBOK -- President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has granted scholarships to university students affected by the recent earthquake in West Nusa Tenggara here on Thursday evening. He pumped up the students' spirit to seize the future.

"I would like to tell you that future challenges will not be lighter, but will be even heavier," he stated at the scholarship extension ceremony at Lombok International Airport.

He noted that the speed of the fourth industrial revolution has become three thousand times faster than the first industrial revolution. "It means there will be very rapid changes in the future. We have learned artificial intelligence, followed by internet of things, cryptocurrency, virtual reality, and Bitcoin. New things will continue to emerge," he explained.

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In view of that, he called on all parties to prepare themselves well, especially the younger generation and students, because competition and rivalry between countries will be tighter in the future. "Thank God, our human resources, our younger generation, and our students have the potential to win when they compete against their foreign rivals," he revealed.

Jokowi called on the students to prepare well and study hard to make the country's competitiveness higher.

He noted that scholarships have been granted to 5,145 recipients to finish their studies. "They must not stop studying because of the earthquake," he elaborated.

Jokowi transferred the scholarship amount to the bank account of seven students in the presence of 800 students attending the event.

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