ADEA and the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) explore areas of partnership

Published on Thursday, 16 January 2014

ADEA had the great pleasure of greeting the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) in Tunis, during the 39th Session of the ADEA Steering Committee.

SEAMEO is an intergovernmental organization established in 1965 by governments of Southeast Asian countries to promote cooperation in education, science and culture in the Southeast Asian region. The organization’s highest level policy-making body is the SEAMEO Council, which comprises the 11 Southeast Asian education ministers.

SEAMEO and ADEA are in some ways similar and this affinity has led ADEA to approach SEAMEO to learn from its model and operations and seek areas of cooperation.

ADEA thus invited SEAMEO to make a presentation on the organization to ADEA’s Bureau of Ministers, which aroused much interest. A side meeting during the SC meetings was also organized for ADEA and SEAMEO to explore possible areas of collaboration.  The meeting was attended by the SEAMEO delegation, and members of the ADEA Secretariat and the Working Groups.

Presentations on both organizations were made in terms of how they are organized and function and what programs  and activities in education and training are carried out. SEAMEO  also provided insight on the activities of two SEAMEO Centers that specialize on Higher Education and Special Education. SEAMEO has 20 specialized institutions that undertake training and research programs in various fields of education, science and culture.

The SEAMEO delegation was composed of the Director of the SEAMEO Secretariat, Mr. Witaya Jeradechakul, the Director of SEAMEO’s Regional Center for Higher Education and Development (SEAMEO RIHED), Mrs. Ratanawijitrasin Sauwakon, the Director of the SEAMEO’s Regional Centre for Special Education (SEAMEO SEN), Mrs. Jasmin Hussain, and Abigail Lanceta, Program Officer at the SEAMEO Secretariat.

Discussions are ongoing regarding fields of cooperation and the signature of an MoU between the two organizations.