A virtual signing ceremony for the ASEAN Campus between Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) and Osaka University (OU) was held on Thursday, July 14, 2022. USM is OU’s first ASEAN Campus in Malaysia. The ceremony was attended by USM members who will contribute to strengthening the partnership, including Vice-Chancellor Professor Dato’ Dr. Faisal Rafiq Mahamd Adikan, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation) Professor Dato’ Dr. Abdul Rahman Mohamed, and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic and International) Professor Dato’ Dr. Narimah Samat. OU attendees included President NISHIO Shojiro, Executive Vice President KAWAHARA Genta, and academic staff who have collaborated with USM in education and research for many years. With the conclusion of the agreement between the two universities, attendees expressed their anticipation for the further development of relations between the two universities. The ceremony included remarks from President NISHIO and Vice-Chancellor Professor Dato’ Dr. Faisal Rafiq Mahamd Adikan, in which they talked about promoting student and researcher exchange, and collaboration with companies through the ASEAN Campus. New opportunities for student exchange will begin in the near future, such as the Osaka University International Certificate Program, conducted in hybrid form, and the Double Degree Program, which will utilize the ASEAN Campus. OU also aims to promote joint research to respond to the issues of the region such as environmental concerns while implementing opportunities for international industry-university collaboration through the ASEAN Campuses.

On Thursday, October 27, Professor Dato' Ir. Dr. Abdul Rahman Mohamed FASc, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research And Innovation) of Universiti Sains Malaysia, visited President NISHIO Shojiro. In attendance from OU were Executive Vice President KAWAHARA Genta and several other faculty members with a long history of educational and research exchange with USM, and attendees exchanged opinins on student and researcher exchange between the two universities, as well as promotion industry-university collaboration. Additionally, in July 2022, a signing ceremony was held for the ASEAN Campus at Univeristy Sains Malaysia, OU's first in Malaysia. https://www.osaka-u.ac.jp/en/news/topics/2022/07/19001

From October 25~31, Professor ARAI Masayoshi (Laboratory of Natural Products for Drug Discovery, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences) and Professor Quamrul Hasan (Center for Global Initiatives) visited 3 partner universities of OU's ASEAN Campuses in Brunei. The two met with Dr. Hazri bin Haji Kifle (President, Universiti Brunei Darussalam), Dr. Haji Norarfan Bin Haji Zainal (President, Sultan Sharif Ali Islamic University), and Dr. Dayang Hajah Zohrah Haji Sulaiman (President, Brunei Institute of Technology), actively exchanging opinions on development of short-term programs such as OUICP and the current state of joint research. In addition, they reunited with students who completed OUICP this academic year, giving them advice regarding their research and other topics. Moving forward, OU plans to send students abroad for the Career Advancement Program in Brunei.

On November 2, the ASEAN Campus Workshop was held at Bandung Institute of Technology, where 8 faculty members were in attendance from OU, including Professor Fujiyama of the International Center for Biotechnology. The first half of the workshop featured details on each graduate school and introductions to short-term programs, while a group consultation session regarding research fields and general information about the university was held in the second half. Professor Dr. Eng. Suprijadi and 75 students were also in attendance from Bandung Institute of Technology.

Representatives from Osaka University (OU) including Prof. Genta KAWAHARA, Executive Vice President of Global Engagement, visited Mahidol University (MU) on 21 and 22 November 2022. It was the first face-to-face high-level meeting since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The goal of the visit was to re-enhance a collaborative network for research and education. OU members met with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nopraenue Sajjarax Dhirathiti, Vice President for International Relations and Corporate Communication on the Salaya campus on 21 November. They shared ideas on possible collaborations such as a joint project on the SDGs, and exchange students and young researchers. Prof. KAWAHARA also visited the Faculty of Liberal Arts to have discussions with Asst. Prof. Aphiwit Liang-itsara, Dean of Faculty of Liberal Arts. They explored further exchange program opportunities for each student. On 22 November, the group from OU went to the Phayathai campus to meet with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Palangpon Kongsaeree, Dean of Faculty of Science, and visited their facilities including the Osaka University ASEAN Campuse established in the Faculty of Science. (Source: https://gi.osaka-u.ac.jp/news/detail/45)

On Thursday, January 5, 2023, Professor UYAMA Hiroshi of the Graduate School of Engineering visited Malaysia. Prof. Uyama met with newly appointed Universiti Sains Malaysia Vice-Chancellor Professor Dato’ Ir. Dr. Abdul Rahman Mohamed, and the two of them spoke about the Joint Symposium scheduled February, as well as future promotion of researcher exchange.

On Monday, January 9, 2023, President NISHIO Shojiro, Executive Vice President KAWAHARA Genta, and OU researchers active in Vietnam visited Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), an Osaka University ASEAN Campus partner. President Nishio talked with VAST President Chau Van Minh, and the two presidents confirmed the importance of further cooperation between the two universities, renewing their cooperative agreement. This signing was followed by a meeting entitled “VAST-OU: collaboration on high-quality S&T human resources development” to commemorate the 50th anniversary of friendship between Japan and Vietnam. The universities had a deep discussion about strengthening cooperation through the ASEAN Campus by sharing information about education, research, and industry-university collaboration at ASEAN Campuses and VAST’s plan to construct a national information and data center in Vietnam. The visitors also toured the Joint Laboratory at VAST, reconfirming their intent to continue to conduct joint research and co-creation projects to meet local needs in industry-academia collaboration.

On Tuesday, February 7, 2023, Prof. Dr. Ir. Jaka Sembiring, M. Eng, Vice-Rector of Academic and Student Affairs at Bandung Institute of Technology and his entorage visited Osaka University and spoke with Executive Vice President KAWAHARA Genta. Also in attendance from Osaka University were Professor MORIKAWA Yoshitada (Graduate School of Engineering), Professor FUJIYAMA Kazuhito (International Center for Biotechnology), Professor FUJITA Kiyoshi (Center for Global Initiatives), and Professor SUMIMURA Yoshinori (Center for Global Initiatives), and opinions were exchanged regarding educational programs for future student exchange.

The International Scientific Symposium of Osaka University ASEAN Campus SDGs Co-Creation Forum was held on February 9, 2023. Hosted in a hybrid format at Osaka University’s Suita Campus, the symposium included two sessions in which researchers from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) and Osaka University gave presentations. The first session was on Plastic Solutions and the second was on Atmosphere and Planetary Health. Vice-Chancellor Professor Dato’ Ir. Dr. Abdul Rahman Mohamed of USM gave the opening remarks, where he expressed his anticipation for further research exchange between ASEAN countries and Osaka University, as well as solving global issues together. From Osaka University, Professor Genta KAWAHARA, Executive Vice President of Global Engagement gave the closing remarks. He talked about expanding the activities of the ASEAN Campus SDGs Co-Creation Forum and his hopes for increasing collaboration in the future. The symposium was attended online by a large number of participants from Malaysia, Vietnam, and other Asian countries. A total of approximately 130 attendees participated at the venue and online, with lively discussions taking place. With this symposium as a first step, Osaka University aims to enhance research collaboration and discussion with the ASEAN region in the future.