ASEAN Future Leaders Urged To Become Progressive Thinkers

GEORGE TOWN (Penang, Malaysia), July 28 (Bernama) -- Future leaders of ASEAN are urged to practice integrity, good governance and honesty as well as be progressive thinkers to ensure the continuity of ASEAN unity. Pro-Chancellor of Malaysian university, Science University of Malaysia (USM), Mustafa Mansur said leadership must carry with it a moral responsibility as the goal was not just to lead but to lead others towards a more fulfilling life. "As future leaders of ASEAN, I urge all to be mindful of the need to establish ties that create a community of ASEAN university students who can contribute their ideas towards future mutual development," he said. He was speaking at the third ASEAN Future Leaders Summit (AFLES 2015), organised by USM's Postgraduate Students Association in collaboration with the Higher Education Leadership Academy (AKEPT) and Thailand's Prince of Songkla University. Mustafa said diversity was the most valuable and unique asset that ASEAN possessed and needed to harness in order to ensure the harmony of the region, strengthened through knowledge and higher education. He said the young generation was powerful amid amazing technology at their command and urged the youth to use the power of knowledge and technology for the betterment of the community. On AFLES, he said the 10-day event aimed to create a network of students who possessed good potential to assume leadership positions and have an impact enhancing transformation for students' social and leadership development. About 100 students from universities in ASEAN converged to share knowledge, experience community work, cultural exchange as well as uplift the awareness of ASEAN students in relation to community strengths and challenges. --BERNAMA