The 3rd Meeting of Southeast Asia-China Education Research Network Kicked off in Bangkok, Thailand

On 5 September 2016, the 3rd Meeting of Southeast Asia-China Education Research Network (SEA-CERN), co-hosted by ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), the secretariat of Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), National Institute of Education Sciences (NIES ), Ministry of Education, PR China, the Ministry of Education of Thailand and the Office of the Education Council (OEC) of Thailand, was held in Bangkok, Thailand. Almost 80 participants attended the Opening Ceremony, including representatives of SEA-CERN Members from China, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Viet Nam, as well as universities and research institutions from Thailand. M.L. Pariyada Diskul, Assistant Secretary to the Minister of Education of Thailand, Dr. Kamol Rodklai, Secretary-General of the OEC of Thailand, Dr. Ethel Agnes P Valenzuela, Deputy Director of the SEAMEO Secretariat and Dr. Liu Jianfeng, Vice President of NIES of China participated in the opening and delivered remarks. Mr. Sun Jianhua, Deputy Director of Education Culture and Tourism Division of ACC delivered opening remarks and had a short meeting with Dr. Kamol Rodklai, Secretary-General of the OEC of Thailand before the SEA-CERN.

Deputy Director Mr. Sun Jianhua, on behalf of ACC, expressed his gratitude to the co-sponsors of the SEA-CERN and welcomed all the participants from SEAMEO Member countries. He introduced ACC’s role and efforts in promoting ASEAN-China cooperation in education, positively evaluated the working progress of SEA-CERN since its inception in 2014. He said that 1st phase cooperation of SEA-CERN had made great achievements with joint efforts of all members from ASEAN and China, and become an important platform for information sharing, views exchange and joint research among related parties. It was expected that the 2nd phrase cooperation could yielded to more fruitful outcomes, to make much greater contributions to ASEAN-China education cooperation.

Secretary-General Dr. Kamol Rodklai briefed on the function of OEC of Thailand, saying that it was a privilege to co-host this meeting, and hoped that Thailand could play a more positive role in the network. Deputy Director Dr. Ethel Agnes P Valenzuela pointed out that it was great important to share education information and successful experience among countries against the background of the trend of transnational students mobility in the 21st century. The establishment of SEA-CERN conformed to the education development and needs of internationalization of Southeast Asian countries and China, and that would certainly play an active role in the aspect of student and faculty exchanges. Vice President Dr. Liu Jianfeng introduced the profile of NIES, reviewed the development history of SEA-CERN, and looked forward to the future cooperation. 

Assistant Secretary to the Minister of Education M L Pariyada Diskul, representing Mr. Dapong Ratanasuwand, Minister of Education of Thailand, congratulated on holding the SEA-CERN. She stated that transnational education research network was beneficial to enhancing the ability of educators, promoting regional integrated construction, and played an active role in the harmonious development of higher education research and improvement of education policies. She hoped that the researchers of the member countries could utilize this network to fully exchange views and ideas, to contribute to the education development and common prosperity of China and Southeast Asian countries.

SEA-CERN was jointly initiated by ACC, SEAMEO and NEIS in 2012, and officially established in 2014, it is the only network whose member-education research institutions were officially recognized and designated by the Ministries of Education of Southeast Asian Countries and China.