An inaugural International Students’ Night 2006 was organised by the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia on 23 August 2006 at Berjaya Times Square Hotel, Kuala Lumpur.

The objectives of the event were

1. To enable the international students and local citizens to learn about each other’s culture as well as to develop international understanding and friendship.

2. To express appreciation to the public and private higher education institutions that have promoted Malaysia as a centre of educational excellence through the presence of many international students in Malaysia.

3. To thank the international students for choosing Malaysia as their study destination.

The special invited dignitaries, the Minister of Higher Education Malaysia, Y.B. Dato’ Mustapa bin Mohamed and the Director General of Department of Higher Education, Dato’ Prof. Dr. Hassan bin Said each gave a light hearty speech. Among the other highlights were the launching of the Malaysia International Students’ Alumni Website www.misa.studymalaysia.com and stage performances by the international students.

Y.B. Dato’ Mustapa bin Mohamed’s speech
Dato’ Mustapa said that he was very happy that night and he was happy to announce that Malaysia has no less than 40,000 international students from more than 100 countries pursuing their studies in the country. The hall that night was filled with more than 700 people consisting of dignitaries, VIPs, invited guests, the press and of course, the international students. He promised that this would be first of such nights and that the International Students’ Night will be held annually after this.

This was a very important occasion for the Ministry as the event not only brought many of the international students together but it also indicated the Ministry’s commitment to ensure that international students are well taken care of.

“We want to make sure that you enjoy staying in Malaysia. From the Prime Minister to every citizen in Malaysia it is our responsibility to ensure that you have the most enjoyable stay in Malaysia. Not only do we care for you but also at the same time we want to make sure that the education you acquire in Malaysia is of the highest quality.” It pleased him that the students enjoy their stay in Malaysia and will have a good decent education in Malaysia.

He spoke again of the many assets and advantages of Malaysia, such as political stability, economic progress, cultural diversity, etc, which are important aspects of the country’s promotional effort. He assured the international students of the Ministry’s commitment to improve their level of service and to solve all issues faced by them.

“I would like to give the assurance tonight that I’ll give my fullest commitment to ensure that the problems you are facing will be eased. I want to reassure you that we will facilitate not only your entry into Malaysia but make your stay in Malaysia as enjoyable as possible.”

Dato’ Mustapa also mentioned that the foreign policy is not just about diplomacy or negotiating with ambassadors and high commissioners but also about semantic personal friendship. It is the important point of view of the Ministry for the international students to have developed close friendships not only with students from other foreign countries but most especially with Malaysians.

“Therefore, it’s my hope that you will make full use of your stay in Malaysia by developing networking and linkages with Malaysians and also with your friends from overseas. We are doing all this not only to promote Malaysia as the centre of education excellence but also to promote our foreign policy objectives. Those who are here in Malaysia represent the immense goodwill of your countries. We Malaysians had been encouraging many nations in the world with the hope to spread peace and goodwill and bring about closer collaboration as well as unity among the various races and religions in the world today. This is a unique experience for us in Malaysia and I’m sure it’s also a unique experience for all of you who have been here all these years.”

Dato’ Mustapa also thanked the high commissioners and ambassadors in Malaysia for their full cooperation in his efforts to bring in the international students. He also thanked the Presidents of private colleges and universities as well as Vice chancellors of public universities for their close co-operation without which the education sector in Malaysia would not have come this far.

He ended his speech by wishing the international students good and fond memories about Malaysia to bring back home as well as a good network of friends from other countries and most especially from Malaysia.

“This small effort of ours, tonight, will demonstrate in a small way how committed we are in Malaysia in forging closer collaboration with everyone throughout the world; how committed we are in developing Malaysia into the centre of educational excellence and how committed we are in working towards global peace, solidarity and harmony.”

Meanwhile, Dato’ Prof. Dr. Hassan bin Said in his speech said that the objective of the International Students’ Night is to promote the image of Malaysia to the eyes of the world as a country that provides quality education to International students. “It is also a show of our appreciation and recognition to public universities and private higher education institutions for their effort in promoting Malaysia as the centre of excellence in Higher Education.”

“The Ministry of Higher Education welcomes international students to come here to study as we are projecting a rise in the number of international students. Therefore, numerous efforts and strategies have been put in place to attract more international students from targeted countries into continuing their tertiary education in Malaysia.”

Source: StudyGuardian Aug 2006