Japan Hopes MJIIT will Boost Ties with Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR, July 7 (Bernama) -- Japan hopes the establishment of the Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology (MJIIT) would be a strong foundation to further develop relations between Tokyo and Kuala Lumpur. Japan Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Hirofumi Hirano (fifth from left) said today the establishment of MJIIT was a significant culmination of the "Look East" Policy which was introduced over 30 years ago. Hirano also expressed confidence that through cooperation between Japan and Malaysia, the MJIIT would become a centre of engineering excellence in Asia where Japanese-style engineering education would take place in this country. "To achieve that, we will increase the number of universities that supported the MJIIT programmes," he told reporters after visiting the MJIIT building in the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) Kuala Lumpur campus, here. Also present were UTM Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Zaini Ujang (fourth from left) and Japan's Ambassador to Malaysia Shigeru Nakamura (third from right). Up to today, MJIIT programmes are strongly supported by 22 Japanese universities and five associate members from government agencies and industries. MJIIT was officiated by Prime Minister Najib Razak on June 1 and the idea of setting up such an institution was conceived by former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Japan's former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in November 2001. Meanwhile, Prof Zaini said that through MJIIT, both academics and students had the advantage of engaging in strategic alliances for enhanced social and professional relations towards a vibrant learning experience and also an intellectual eco-system. "More significantly, Japan-based industrial linkages give opportunities for more industrial engagement. This allows both academics and students to use their experience as part of their studies and research in effective ways," he said. According to Prof Zaini, MJIIT aims to have 2,700 students within seven years, with 40 per cent of the students foreign. Currently, there are 65 undergraduate students and 54 post-graduate students at MJIIT. MJIIT offers two undergraduate programmes, namely Bachelor in Mechanical Precision Engineering and Bachelor in Electronic Systems Engineering, as well as the post-graduate level Master of Philosophy (MPhil) by Research. -- BERNAMA