Delegation from the Ministry of Education of UAE Visits the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the University of Tokyo (26th July 2023)
On Wednesday, 26th July 2023, a delegation from the Ministry of Education of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) led by H.E. Dr. Amna Al Dahak Al Shamsi, Assistant Undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Education, visited the Komaba Campus to discuss academic exchanges between the two countries with Prof. Fumitaka Mafune, Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, University of Tokyo.
On 17th July 2023, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida had visited the UAE, and during his meeting with President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, he announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of education. Subsequently, the delegation of the UAE Ministry of Education visited the University of Tokyo with the purpose of exploring concrete opportunities for academic and educational exchanges between Japan and the UAE.
The meeting was graced by H.E. Mr. Shihab Al Faheem, Ambassador Extraordinary Plenipotentiary of the UAE to Japan; Dr. Sameera Abdulla Al Hosani, Director of Department Humanities and Languages Curriculum; Ms. Amna Al Hammadi, Executive in International Educational Cooperation, the Ministry of Education of the UAE; and Mr. Mohamed Al Falahi, Counsellor of the UAE Embassy in Japan. Participants for the discussion also included the members of University of Tokyo Centre for Middle Eastern Studies (UTCMES): Director Hidemi Takahashi, Associate Professor Kota Kariya, Visiting Professor Seiji Morimoto, Project Associate Professor Hiroyuki Suzuki, Project Assistant Professor Fuga Kimura, and Project Researcher Makoto Kurasawa (Bahwan Library).
At the beginning of the meeting, the Dean, Prof. Mafune welcomed the delegation of the UAE Ministry of Education to the University of Tokyo and expressed his expectations toward further development of academic and educational relations between the two countries, referring to the visit of UTCMES members to the UAE in March 2023 and the visit of the UAE Ambassador to Japan to the University of Tokyo in June 2023.
In response, Assistant Undersecretary H.E. Dr. Al Shamsi expressed her desire to discuss the possibility of the UAE offering Arabic language courses, academic agreements between UAE universities and the University of Tokyo, and specific exchange schemes in the academic and educational fields. She also expressed her desire to actively pursue academic exchange not only in the field of Arabic language education, but also in the fields of natural sciences and the arts.
This was followed by an open exchange of opinions between the UAE delegation and the members from the University of Tokyo. Both parties expressed their commitment to continuing research and sharing information to foster academic and educational exchange.
This text was translated into English by UTCMES staff.
For the original text in Japanese, please visit the University’s website.
