Malaysia To Raise Intake Of Foreign Students To 100,000

Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia aims to increase the number of foreign students studying in the country to 100,000 by 2010 from the current 50,000, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

To date, students from more than 150 countries are studying in Malaysia, making the country one of the most important providers of international education, together with other countries like the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

Abdullah said education in Malaysia could be said to have gone the full circle after 50 years of independence.

This was because while the country used to send most of its students to study abroad and was still sending some, an increasing number of foreign students were coming to study here, he said at the official opening of the Limkokwing University London and its London campus in Picaddilly.

The text of his speech was released here. Present at the function were Tan Sri Lim Kok Wing, president of Limkokwing University of Creative Technology, and Datuk Abdul Aziz Mohammed, the Malaysian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.

Abdullah, who arrived in London on Sunday from New York where he had addressed the United Nations General Assembly last week, paid tribute to Lim and Limkokwing University for their overseas initiative.

He said it was also a proud moment for Malaysia and Malaysians because the establishment of the university in London marked the first time a Malaysian university had succeeded in expanding its reach to the United Kingdom.

In this respect, the prime minister urged more Malaysian universities with the requisite criteria to go international and open overseas campuses and the government would continue to lend strong support to such initiatives.

Malaysia, the prime minister said, aspired to become a regional centre of excellence for education and crucial to the country‘s success in this area would be the role of Malaysian private sector universities and colleges because they enrolled the bulk of foreign students.

"It is also one branch of education where we see much dynamism and innovation," he said, but in order to ensure success, the quality of education delivered must be of the highest standard; conforming to, or even surpassing, global standards.

"No compromises must ever be made on this. This is the only way to compete and be among the best in the world," he stressed.

Abdullah said when he opened Limkokwing University‘s main campus in Cyberjaya three years ago, he had expressed the hope that it would develop into one of the best in the world.

He said he was pleased to see that it had gone some way towards that aspiration as it had been recognised as one of the leading universities of its kind, with campuses in six countries on three continents, with a total enrolment of 16,000 students.

It has also built up a collegial network of more than 160 universities and colleges spread over more than 70 countries.

Abdullah said the presence of Limkokwing University in other countries was a boon for Malaysian education as it would provide a strong platform to spearhead the globalisation of Malaysian education.

The prime minister reiterated that Malaysia‘s ethnic and cultural diversity formed an ideal basis on which to "think global".

"That is to say, we are well aquainted with, and have a deep appreciation of, multi-culturalism.

"This, I believe, is an important asset to succeed in a globalised world," he added.

Abdullah said that he was also pleased that multi-culturalism was being encouraged at the Limkokwing University, given that more than half of the student population at the university‘s main campus in Cyberjaya consisted of foreign students.

He was also pleased that Limkokwing University had gone one step further by introducing the "Global Classroom" concept to encourage not only cultural diversity but also to get students to learn in different countries en route to completing their degrees.

Such exposure would greatly contribute to the development of confident and accomplished graduates who would be assets in any workplace and this was the ultimate goal of Malaysia‘s education policy.

Abdullah said while it was important that Malaysians learnt about other cultures and business practices, they must also take steps to educate others about their own unique culture and practices.

He commended Limkokwing University for establishing a "Centre for Malay Studies" at the London campus of the university to promote the study and research of Malay culture, arts, customs, heritage and language, and a "Think Malaysia Business Centre".

The "Think Malaysia Business Centre" is to provide information on various issues, including business and investment opportunities, tourism and education opportunities and even the "Malaysia My Second Home" programme.

Source: www.bernama.com.my (2 Oktober 2007)
-

Arsip Blog

Recent Posts