EU-Asia Higher Education Platform planned

Three European higher education organisations have been entrusted with establishing an EU-Asia Higher Education Platform, as part of the EU’s Asia Link programme, the European University
Association (EUA), the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the Dutch Organisation for International Cooperation in Higher Education (Nuffic) join forces in the two-year project.

The main aims are to:
– provide a means for enhancing information exchange, dialogue, and cooperation in higher education and research between the two regions;
– develop best practices for institutional development and cooperation, and foster mobility of students and academics between the two regions;
– draw attention to the role and situation of universities in developing countries.

Until the end of 2009, the target is to organise a series of workshops and round tables for academics and policy-makers in Asia and Europe. The events are set to address institutional
development and cooperation issues as well as higher education governance and management, decentralisation, cooperation in graduate education, and interregional and inter-institutional quality
assurance.

The project partners are also planning to create an interactive website as a key instrument for information and communication, and to organise two large higher education fairs in Asia.

Under the Asia Link programme, the European Commission has established regional cooperation between the EU and Asia to address three major areas, including support to regional integration,
support to uprooted people, and policy and knowhow-based cooperation. Higher education and support to research institutes are key priorities as set out in the Commission’s Regional Strategy
Paper for EU-Asia Cooperation (2007 to 2013) hence the ?44 million set aside for cooperation in these fields.

The European Commission explains on its website that ‘higher education institutions play a key role in society contributing to economic growth and development goals. The sector thrives on the
cross-fertilisation of ideas and on the exchange of students and academics. International partnerships are becoming increasingly important in the context of globalisation, which is why the EU
regards higher education as a strategic sector for development cooperation with Asia.’

For further information, please visit:
EU-Asia cooperation in higher education:

European University Association (EUA):
https://www.eua.be/

German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD):
https://www.daad.de/

Dutch Organisation for International Cooperation in Higher Education (Nuffic):
https://www.nuffic.nl/