March 17, 2015, Quezon City – The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) held a forum today with representatives from higher education institutions (HEIs) from the Philippines and Canada. No less than CHED Chairperson Dr. Patricia B. Licuanan and Canadian Ambassador to the Philippines, His Excellency Neil Reeder graced the occasion.
The event aimed to reinforce PH-Canada academic cooperation and provide a venue for the institutions to initiate networking, exchange ideas and best practices in the field. It was attended by more than 20 public and private HEIs from the Philippines and institutions from the Vancouver Island Public Post-Secondary Alliance (VPPA).
“In today’s global village, establishing linkages with key partners around the world is necessary for higher education institutions to be truly globally competitive,” stressed Chairperson Licuanan. She urged Philippine HEIs “to explore more opportunities for greater cooperation and collaboration in order to better prepare our students and faculty to face the challenges of the 21st century.”
Ambassador Reeder acknowledged the PH government’s decision to pursue the K-12 system as it will in the long run strengthen the educational system and better position the Philippines in the international education market. “Today’s event is a testament to our commitment in growing all natures of ties in Education that will contribute to the enhancement of our bilateral relationship,” he added.
As early as 2013, official visits of the Philippine delegation to Canada and vice-versa spurred interest to increase academic cooperation.
In November 2014, a Joint Statement on Education Collaboration and Action Plan (AY 2015 – 2018) between the Commission on Higher Education and Canadian Bureau for International Education was formalized.
The agreement forms a wider relationship between the two countries in the next three years. It encompasses a broad range of areas to include: Partnership Missions; Ph.D. sandwich program; Continuing long-distance research collaboration; Reciprocal student and faculty/academic personnel mobility; Capacity building training; Academic leadership certificate program and Support to K-12 or post-secondary transition program.
Apart from the agreement, the Philippines has bilateral agreements with individual provinces of Canada, i.e. Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, British Columbia, Ottawa and Quebec on academic exchanges, scholarships and the like, and more underway.
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| PH-Canada Academic Cooperation to strengthen ties in the next three years |