Progress made on AIT-Africa initiative
AIT is making good progress on its AIT-Africa initiative. On 30 January 2007, Prof. Said Irandoust, AIT President, met with H.E Mr. Kim Hak-Su, Under Secretary General of the UN and Executive Secretary of ESCAP to discuss possible cooperation between AIT and UNESCAP regarding the 'Asia/Africa Initiative for Higher Education in Science and Technology for Development.' The other participants were Mr. Sivasankaran Thampi, Director of the Information Communication and Space Technology, Ambassador Yoon Jee-Joon, Senior Advisor to the president, Prof. Vilas Wuwongse, Vice President for External Relations, and Dr. Roland Amoussou-Guenou, AIT-Africa Initiative Project Manager. Ms. Atsuko Okuda, Information Technology Officer, ESCAP who is a member of the AIT-Africa task force has contributed greatly to the work of the task force as well in the facilitation of contacts and meetings.
From the meeting, AIT and ESCAP agreed to collaborate in the 'Asia/Africa Initiative for Higher Education in Science and Technology for Development' (which will be renamed Asia/Africa Initiative for Higher Learning in Science and Technology for Development). This initiative is recognized as timely and relevant to promote the intercontinental cooperation between Asia and Africa. There will be in-kind assistance from ESCAP, especially the allocation of the UN Conference Center for the planned forum on 'Asia-Africa Forum for Higher Education in Science, Technology and Development', which is tentatively scheduled on 28-29 November 2007. ESCAP will introduce this initiative within its internal decision-making process for official endorsement. There will be sharing of information between AIT and ESCAP teams.