JOGJAKARTA (KU) - Universities in Southeast Asia joining the ASEAN University Network (AUN) initiated cooperation with several universities in Europe. The cooperation is in the form of exchange of students, faculty, and joint degree program through the Erasmus Mundus scholarship. The initiation started with a dialogue between AUN Board of Trustees and representatives from the European Union in the UGM Senate Hall from 27-28 July 2010.
AUN Executive Director Prof. Dr. Nantana Gajaseni conveyed that cooperation among Southeast Asian and EU universities is potentially conducted. An association of regional cooperation of ASEAN countries and the European Union will allow the cooperation to be sustainably realized.
"This cooperation could be mutually beneficial to both parties, I believe the implementation of this cooperation could be conducted later in the long term," Nantana said in the opening of Access Dialogue Event ASEAN-EU Framework of Cooperation of Higher Education in UGM Senate Hall on Tuesday (27/7).
Despite the long process to realize this cooperation, but she is optimistic that with the meeting and regular dialogue between ASEAN and the European Union, the cooperation would soon be realized.
UGM Vice Rector of Alumni and Business Development, Prof. Ir. Toni Atyanto Dharoko, M. Phil, Ph.D., in his speech said that AUN cooperation with the European Union is expected to promote Southeast Asian higher education in Europe. "This is a great opportunity to improve the academic quality," he explained.
UGM Executive Secretary, Drs. Djoko Moerdiyanto, M.A., who is in charge of the event said that the meeting of AUN Board of Trustees and the representative of the European Union took place for two days from 27-28 July 2010. Furthermore, regular meeting of university representatives of AUN members will be conducted from 29-30 July. The opening ceremony of AUN Board of Trustee Meeting was attended by a representative of the European Union universities, Mr. Caludio Dondi, and Deputy Secretary of Socio Cultural Affairs, ASEAN Secretariat, Dato' Misran Karmian.