Asia e University To Enter Austrailan Market

KOTA KINABALU (Bernama) - Plans are underway for Asia e
University (AeU), a flexible-mode international university set in Asia and
headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, to penetrate another non-Asian market --
Australia.

With 150 learning centres established throughout the region in only three
years since it was set up, the university aims to open three or more learning
centres there soon.

"Outside Asia, AeU has already set up three learning centres in New Zealand
...we want to establish three to four learning centres in Australia.

"Several potential partners there have expressed interest," said its
vice-president, Dr Abdillah Suffian Abdul Rahim, at the signing of a memorandum
of understanding (MoU) between AeU and PHM Borneo Education Sdn Bhd here Monday.

The agreement inked today is to establish AeU's learning centre in Sabah
via PHM Borneo.

AeU is an initiative of Malaysia and is endorsed by the 31-member countries
of Asian Cooperation Dialogue (ACD). This recognition led to the university
being made the gateway for higher education, via the Economic Transformation
Programme (ETP).

Dr Abdillah said currently, the university had made its presence felt in all
Middle East countries, except for Syria, and had even reached Eastern European
countries like Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

Meanwhile, state tourism, culture and environment minister Masidi
Manjun, who witnessed the MoU, reminded operators of private higher learning
institutions (IPTS) to be responsible and be equipped with basic conditions, as
required of them to operate.

"What is the use of IPTS mushrooming without quality. If such institutions
want to become a centre of education, we must ensure quality. Otherwise, the
students will migrate to other countries to further their studies," he said.

Masidi hoped the higher education ministry would monitor IPTS facilities in
Sabah to ensure that students enrolling in such institutions were not
short-changed.

He said such monitoring (by the ministry) was imperative as the students
should not lose out in terms of the hard-earned money of their parents, having
to pay off their study loans or end up obtaining a worthless certificate.