On Tuesday, March 7, we held the “PEACE” Student Exchange Program Kick-off Meeting Symposium at the Library Hall of the Central Library on the Higashi-Hiroshima Campus (see the program here ).

The event attracted about 100 participants, including several representatives we invited from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, Cambodia, the Ministry of Education, Myanmar, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology-Japan (MEXT) as well as the faculty/staff and student representatives from our partner universities in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, and Thailand.

The symposium opened with a welcome and opening address by Dr. Mitsuo Ochi, President of Hiroshima University, followed by an address by Mr. Hideki Iwabuchi, Director, Office for International Planning, MEXT. After Mr. Iwabuchi’s address, we had two keynote speakers for the symposium: H.E. MAK Ngoy, Director General, Directorate General of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, Cambodia and H.E. Soe Win, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Myanmar.

The afternoon session included presentations by Hiroshima University, Hiroshima University of Economics, and our 13 partner universities. The presentations were given under the general theme of “The Roles and Issues of Higher Education for the Attainment of UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Asia.” The general theme was then divided into two more specific topics. Half of the universities presented on the topic of “The Roles and Issues of Student Exchanges in Asian Universities” and the other half on “The Roles and Issues of Regional Harmonization among Asian Universities for the Attainment of SDGs.” You can see their presentation slides below:

 

Session I: “The Roles and Issues of Student Exchanges in Asian Universities”

1. Hiroshima University of Economics (Japan)
2. Royal University of Phnom Penh (Cambodia)
3. Vietnam National University, Hanoi, University of Science (Vietnam)
4. University of Yangon (Myanmar)
5. National University of Laos (Laos)
6. Foreign Trade University (Vietnam)
7. University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam)

 

Session II: “The Roles and Issues of Regional Harmonization among Asian Universities for the Attainment of SDGs”

8. Kasetsart University (Thailand)
9. University of Transport and Communications (Vietnam)
10. University of Health Sciences (Cambodia)
11. Vietnam National University, Hanoi, University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Vietnam)
12. Myeik University (Myanmar)
13. Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, University of Science (Vietnam)
14. Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Vietnam)
15. Hiroshima University (Japan)

 

Thanks to all the participants who were very actively engaged in the discussions before, during, and after the symposium, we believe that we were able to establish a firm basis for our future projects, and intra/international collaboration.