KUALA LUMPUR: The upcoming University of Tsukuba campus in Malaysia will become the first Japanese public university to set up a campus outside of the land of the rising sun.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said the University of Tsukuba campus will be opening here next year, and will create a history between the two nations.
He said the establishment of the campus had been proposed by the Malaysian government in 2018, but was only finalised recently.
"This setting up of a university campus outside Japan is historic for Japan. This is the very first time that a Japanese university has ventured out to open a campus in another country."
Khaled said this is also a great recognition to the Higher Education Ministry and an opportunity for both governments to foster closer bilateral relations between Malaysia and Japan.
"The bilateral ties between both countries goes a long way back to the 'Look East Policy' introduced more than 40 years ago.
"We, too, have established business and investment ties between the two countries for several decades and we hope this collaboration will continue our strong ties for years to come," Khaled said in an opening speech at the Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) signing ceremony between the Malaysian government and Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology and the Japanese Foreign Affairs Ministry at a hotel here today.
Also present was the Higher Education deputy minister Datuk Muhammad Yusof Apdal and Japanese Ambassador to Malaysia Takahashi Katsuhiko.
The University of Tsukuba was established in 1872 and is one of the 86 public-listed universities in the top 10 universities in Japan.
He said the MoC was signed as a sign of commitment and agreement between both governments, before the other matters including its location and finances are being finalised.
Khaled said the establishment of the University of Tsukuba campus in Malaysia will provide opportunities and attract more international students to study here.
"Hopefully the signing of the MoC will further strengthen diplomatic relations between the two countries and make Malaysia a hub for global talent and knowledge in the future," he said.