Malaysia plans to establish a Centre of Excellence in Education and Training aimed at youth from developing and post-conflict nations. Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir announced that the initiative will focus on countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, and Timor Leste.
He said the matter was agreed upon in a bilateral meeting with the ASEAN and East Asian Economic Studies Institute (ERIA) president Professor Tetsuya Watanabe and World Bank Group lead trade specialist Roberto Echandi in his visit to Switzerland. “This is a great recognition for the country for getting the mandate to develop the centre”, he said in a statement.
Zambry also highlighted that this initiative is part of the Higher Education Ministry's (KPT) efforts to offer the best educational opportunities to individuals from these countries. He noted that Malaysia supports the proposal as it aligns with KPT’s commitment to internationalizing higher education.
“At the initial stage, the Institute of Malaysian and International Studies (Ikmas) at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) will be the coordinator for related programmes in making this initiative a success,” he said.
During his four-day visit to Switzerland, invited by the World Trade Institute (WTI), Zambry engaged in numerous bilateral meetings and discussions, as well as delivered keynote speeches, all aimed at enhancing cooperation and advancing the internationalization of higher education.
He stated that the visit to Switzerland has been productive, further solidifying bilateral relations and strategic cooperation to successfully advance talent development and the internationalization of higher education.
