Malaysia Stands Tall In The Eyes Of Kazakhstan

By Norshazlina Nor'azman ASTANA, Nov 21 (Bernama) -- Malaysia's openness to cultural diversity and its march towards maintaining a sustainable economy, as well as its practice of good governance, have contributed to turning it into a model for other countries, including Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan itself is impressed with Malaysia's success stories and is keen to learn from the nation's best practices and experiences in various fields. Diplomatic relations between both countries were established in 1992, following the official visits of former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev to each other's countries. The ties between the two countries was further strengthened in May this year when Prime Minister Najib Razak made an official visit to Kazakhstan and announced after a four-eyed meeting with Nazarbayev that Kazakhstan has made Malaysia one of its model nations in the country's development plan. MALAYSIA, A ROLE MODEL Kazakhstan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Erlan Idrissov, said the Central Asian republic regarded Malaysia as a key partner in Southeast Asia, with which it enjoyed growing political dialogue, as well as trade and economic cooperation. He said his country looked up to Malaysia as a role model in developing and modernising its economy, as well as in the areas of public sector governance, education and investment of human capital. "We have great respect for Malaysia's economic growth and we are studying how the nation achieved it. We want to focus on Malaysia's experiences as it will be useful for Kazakhstan's development," he told Bernama, here recently. Pointing out to Malaysia's multiracial society, Idrissov said the country was also a good example of how various communities could coexist peacefully on the basis of trust. "For Malaysia, maintaining interethnic stability and harmony is one of its top priorities... we like this very much as we also share the common principles of a multiethnic and multireligious society," he added. PREFERRED DESTINATION FOR EDUCATION Idrissov also said that Malaysia was now becoming the preferred destination for Kazakhstan's students who wished to pursue their higher education or attend short-term courses abroad. He said Malaysia's public and private universities not only offered high quality education, but also charged lower fees compared with other countries. The similarities in their cultures and society were among the main reasons why almost 1,700 Kazakh students have chosen to study in Malaysia, he said, adding that the students also served as a "bridge of friendship" between the two countries which, in turn, helped to foster stronger ties. "This is a good figure and the number may increase. In fact, the number of our students studying in Malaysia is almost on par with the United States where we have around 2,000 students," he said. He added that Malaysian institutions of higher learning may also eventually be invited to set up campuses in Kazakhstan and conduct joint academic programmes there. -- BERNAMA