The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Brunei Darussalam, in collaboration with Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) hosted the inaugural Republic of Korea-Brunei Darussalam Roundtable with Friends of Southeast Asia on 6th June 2023 at the Senate Room, Chancellor Hall, UBD. Present as distinguished guests at the event were His Excellency Kim Soung-eun, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Brunei Darussalam and His Excellency Ambassador Suh Chung Hsam, Former Ambassador to the Republic of Singapore, as well as UBD’s Assistant Vice-Chancellor (Global Affairs), Dr. Joyce Teo Siew Yean. The roundtable aimed at discussing current topics of relevance in strengthening Republic of Korea and Brunei Darussalam relations.
In her opening remarks, Dr. Joyce Teo Siew Yean shared, “Looking to the future, there are many potential areas of collaboration between agencies and institutions including universities in Southeast Asia and the Republic of Korea in the fields of technology and innovation as well as education and cultural exchanges.”
The roundtable discussion featured two special presentations delivered by His Excellency Ambassador Suh Chung Ha Former on the Korea-ASEAN Solidarity Initiative (KASI) and Professor Kim Hyung Jong from the Department of International Relations, Yonsei University on Korea-Brunei Relations in the Context of ROK-ASEAN Relations. This was followed by various discussion topics amongst subject experts comprised of Brunei government senior officials, industry experts and academics, highlighting various aspects of Korea-Brunei relations ranging from future and emerging areas in digital and education sectors, tourism and culture, and regional and global challenges.
Discussing future and emerging areas in digital and education sectors was a panel comprised of Dr Mohamad Saiful bin Haji Omar, Assistant Vice Chancellor (Industry and Services), Universiti Teknologi Brunei, Pengiran Sarimah binti Pengiran Haji Abdul Latiff Abbas Chairperson, The InfoCom Federation Brunei, Mr Daniel Leong, Chief Executive Officer, Brunei Economic Development Board and Darussalam Enterprise and Dr Juraidah binti Haji Musa, Assistant Professor (Educational Technology) and Programme Leader (School Partnership) Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education, UBD. The panel was moderated by Professor Ahmed Masood Khalid from the UBD School of Business and Economics, UBD.
On the tourism and culture panel moderated by Dk Dr Noor Hasharina binti Pengiran Haji Hassan, Director of Institute of Asian Studies, UBD, were Pengiran Haji Mohd Hasnan bin Pengiran Haji Ali Hassan, Permanent Secretary (Culture), Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, Dato Paduka Awang Haji Shofry bin Haji Abdul Ghafor, President, Brunei Art Forum, Dayang Hajah Normah Suria Hayati binti Pehin Jawatan Dalam Seri Maharaja Dato Seri Utama (Dr) Awang Haji Mohd Jamil Al-Sufri, President, Brunei Korea Association for Friendship and Mr Gabriel Yong Yit Vui, Programme Leader (Geography, Environment and Development) Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, UBD.
The final panel, regional and global challenges, were shared by Pengiran Dr Mohd Hafiizh bin Pengiran Haji Hashim, Assistant Lecturer, Academy of Brunei Studies, UBD, Dr Azmi bin Mohamad, Brunei Darussalam Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Awang Lim Hung Ming, Assistant Director of ASEAN Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This panel was moderated by Professor Ahmed Masood Khalid from the UBD School of Business and Economics, UBD.
UBD has long held close relations in academic collaboration with universities in the Republic of Korea, with currently twenty-seven partner universities in Korea and several more via multilateral partnerships in the ASEAN University Network (AUN) + 3, the Asian International Mobility for Students (AIMS) Programme and the University Mobility in Asia and the Pacific (UMAP) network. Two dual degrees have been established between UBD and top universities in Korea: the dual degree Masters and PhD in biodiversity between UBD’s Faculty of Science and Korea University’s College of Life Sciences and Biotechnology and the dual degree Masters and PhD in Industrial Engineering between UBD Faculty of Integrated Technologies and Sungkyunkwan’s (SKKU) College of Engineering. Under UBD’s Discovery Year programme, where its undergraduates in their 3rd year (out of 4 years of degree programme) spend a year out of the university, UBD has sent more than 1000 students to Korea since 2011. Korean Language is taught at UBD’s Language Centre and is one of the most popular languages taken by students and the general public. On 10 March 2019, Mrs Kim Jung-sook, the First Lady of the Republic of Korea visited UBD and observed the Korean Language classes as well as met with students who had been following advanced levels of Korean Language in UBD.