Norway’s diplomats were welcomed to the Institute for discussions on
collaboration by H.E. Dr. Subin Pinkayan, Chairman of the AIT Board of
Trustees; Prof. Emeritus Dr. Sahas Bunditkul, Chairman of the AIT
Executive Committee, Prof. Worsak Kanok-Nukulchai, President, Asian
Institute of Technology, and a number of senior AIT officials.
Ambassador Paulsen said he was pleased to visit the institute for the
first time, and expressed some of the embassy’s opinions concerning its
relationship with AIT and the institute’s development.
Assuring the envoy of AIT’s desire to work with the government of
Norway, Chairman Subin, who is a former Minister of Foreign Affairs of
Thailand, asked that the embassy think of AIT as its higher education
partner for regional development. Dr. Sahas, himself a former deputy
prime minister of Thailand, concurred with the chairman.
Thanking the Ambassador for his country’s generous historical
contributions to the Institute, President Worsak said he looked forward
to stronger partnership with the embassy in the future.
Norway first initiated support for the Asian Institute of Technology
in 1978 through its Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad).
Overall, Norway has supported 631 students to complete their Master’s
and Doctoral degrees. Currently, through the three-year NMFA-AIT
Scholarship Program, the country supports a large number of Myanmar
citizens to complete their master’s degree at AIT.
Dr. Gabrielle Groves, Head of External Relations and Communications
Office, outlined a number of key impacts of the NMFA-AIT program, which
is now in its final year. First batch graduates attained 100 per cent
employability in Myanmar, she said, and 66 percent of all scholarship
recipients were female.
Later, Ambassador Paulsen met the large contingent of Myanmar current
AIT students funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NMFA)
Scholarship Program. He told the students that Norway was happy to
earmark funds to assist Myanmar nationals to attain their Master’s
degree at AIT, and invited them to have a life-long connection to the
country.
Scholarship recipients’ increased technical and professional skills
form an important part Norway’s overall goal to assist capacity
development in Myanmar, thereby aiding the country’s democracy process
that contributes to peace and social progress, Ambassador Paulsen said.
