UKM, Kyoto University ink MoU on educational cooperation

PUTRAJAYA: Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) today signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Kyoto University of Japan to enhance their educational cooperation, particularly in Islamic civilisation studies.
The signing was witnessed by former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who is also the founder of the Islam Hadhari concept.
UKM was represented by its vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Seri Dr Noor Azlan Ghazali and Kyoto University by its executive vice-president of Gender Equality, International Affairs and Public Relations, Prof Dr Inaba Kayo.
Noor Azlan said the five-year MoU marked both universities' commitment to working together more closely towards the pursuit of internalisation of education through collaboration in research, forums, and student exchange programmes.
"East Asian countries like Japan and Taiwan have shown their interest in Islamic civilisation studies and science in Islam, so UKM wants to play its role to promote understanding of Islam through this kind of collaboration," he told reporters after the signing ceremony, here.
Noor Azlan said the two universities had been collaborating on educational activities since 2009 which led to the MoU-signing ceremony.
He said both universities started their strategic partnership through the student mobility programme and the annual International Symposium on Islam, Civilisation and Science (ISICAS) which was conducted alternately in Kyoto University and UKM.
The partnership was then formalised through the signing of a letter of intent in 2010 between the Islam Hadhari Institute of UKM and Centre for Islamic Area Studies of Kyoto University.
He said both universities further strengthened their ties by establishing the Hadhari Centre for Islamic Civilisation Studies (Hadhari-KU) at Kyoto University in 2014. — Bernama