BANGKOK, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) -- Ten ASEAN members agreed to promote collaboration on research and educational development in contributing towards the realization of the ASEAN Community by the year 2015, said Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Friday.
"As the ASEAN Community is expected to come out in the 5-year time, I think it will be the most appropriate if we start to talk about the issue together so that we have enough time to start preparing our resources for the ASEAN research clusters," the prime minister said while presiding over the first conference on pioneering ASEAN Higher Education Research Clusters.
During the two-day conference, the representatives from 10 ASEAN nations will set up few pilot clusters which are likely to be food security and climate change, according to Thailand's Office of Higher Education Commission Secretary-General Sumate Yamnoon.
Considering research as an important tool to enhance the country's competitiveness, Thai government has earmarked about 2 billion baht (66.23 million U.S. dollars) for 3 years from fiscal year 2011 to support the accelerated development of university research activities nationwide, the prime minister said.
The representatives of 10 ASEAN members also signed Joint Statement on Promoting Research Clusters as they believe the research will be a solid foundation that will lead ASEAN to sustainable development.
"Currently, China, Japan and (South) Korea are the leaders in research development at the global level. ASEAN countries, therefore, should synergize to support each country's research strength in order to uplift research competitiveness to keep up with other countries in Asia," Sumate Yamnoon said.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was founded in 1967 with an aim to accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development among its members. The organization consists of 10 member nations -- Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam.
| Editor: Xiong Tong |
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