On 3 November 2016, the annual meeting between Mahidol University and the Royal Norwegian Embassy was conducted in Bangkok. The Norwegian government cooperates with Mahidol University on two capacity-building programs for Master and PhD students in five ASEAN countries. So far, 151 students have been granted scholarships, and the students are expected to contribute to sustainable development in their home countries when they return. At the meeting, representatives of the parties met and discussed the progress of the two ongoing projects.
The first project, a capacity-building project for institutions in Myanmar, aims to facilitate development of human resources for Myanmar, especially in the area of life sciences and health, social and population science, human rights and peace studies, and environmental science. The scholarship project was intended to cover 30 master and 30 PhD students, but Professor Sansanee Chaiyaroj, Vice President for Research and International Relations at Mahidol University, highlighted the successful management of the finances resulting in an additional four scholarships, leaving the total to 64 students. Mahidol University has granted scholarships for 35 master and 29 PhD students.
The second project is a Mahidol-Norway Capacity Building Initiative for ASEAN. The goal of the project is to build the capacity of institutions in ASEAN through the graduate and training programs by Mahidol University. The project aims to provide scholarships for 60 Ph.D and 40 master students. Half of the scholarships are granted to students from Myanmar. In addition, scholarships are granted to candidates from Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos and the Philippines. So far, 35 PhD students and 52 master students are enrolled.
At the meeting, Minister Counsellor Mr. Vegard Holmelid emphasized the importance of education to develop human resources and strengthen institutional capabilities. He also highlighted the good cooperation between Mahidol University and the Norwegian Embassy.
Source: The Embassy of Norway in Bangkok
