Universitas PGRI Yogyakarta (UPY) sent two representatives to attend the Fifth ASEAN – China Forum of Private Higher Education Development and Cooperation and the third annual meeting of the ASEAN – China Alliance for Private Higher Education Institutions (ACAPHEI), which took place on 5-6 December 2023 at University of Sanya (USY), China. UPY lecturers in the ACAPHEI global class program were represented by Guruh Ghifar Zalzalah, S.E., M.Sc, together with Nugraeni Putrie Windarti as student representatives.
On the first day, December 5 2023, participants were taken to get to know Yazhou Bay Science and Technology City, Sanya, to provide and introduce developments and innovations in the field of science and technology in Sanya. After being invited around, participants then took part in the ACAPHEI Forum activities in the Lecture Hall, Shushan Hall, which was opened by Prof. Dr. Lu Dan, President of Sanya University, Chairman of ACAPHEI, and Vice President of China Private Education Association. In his speech he expressed his hope that through this program it is hoped that he can improve the global status of the university by collaborating with the world of academia and industry. The aim is not only to create a university that is an example for others in achieving future excellence, but also to provide concrete solutions to advance the education sector as a whole.
From SEAMEO RIHED, represented by Center Director Asst. Prof. Dr. Romyen Kosaikanontyang explained that educational problems cannot be solved by one university alone. For this reason, forums like this are able to become a medium for sharing opinions in solving problems in the university level education system. The activity continued with a presentation from the first speaker Dr.Wang and Executive President, University of Sanya. Second Speaker, Mr. Phornvit Phacharintanakul Representative of CP Group-Advisor for Education, Healthcare & Wellness Business of CP All; Senior Vice President of Panyapiwat Institute of Management, Thailand. The third speaker, Mr. Vivakanandan Sinniah President of Association of Private Higher Education Institutions of Singapore, Executive Chairman, PSB Academy Singapore. The fourth speaker, Dr. Wirun Phichaiwongphakdee Thailand-China Research Center of the Belt and Road Initiative in Thailand Researcher, Thai-Chinese Strategic Research Center (TCRC) of the National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT).
On the second day, December 6, each team according to the ACAPHEI activity theme was taken for a Tour & Visit at USY. Students and lecturers from UPY had the opportunity to visit the language development class, which was guided by Ms. Anita is a lecturer from the Language and Creative Industries Institute and one of the language development class lecturers from USY. In this activity, Mr. Guruh Ghifar Zalzalah, S.E., M.Sc delivered language development material to students at USY and student representatives from Indonesia and Vietnam. The class atmosphere was very active because students presented their learning results and asked each other questions and answers to discuss language development directly.
The activity continued with the Annual Meeting of the ASEAN-China Alliance for Private Higher Education Institutions and Closing Ceremony of the Forum. Student representatives from each activity program presented the results of their classes and hopes for the ACAPHEI program in the coming year. The activity continued with the signing of the 2023 Joint Research Program MoU and the 2023 Student Multi Campus Mobility Program.
The activity closed with a speech from the 2024 Host University Representative. Asst. Prof. Dr. Che Yi, Executive Secretary General of ACAPHEI who is Vice President of Talent Development for Geely, gave the flag as a symbol of hosting ACAPHEI in 2024 to Ass. Prof. Dr. Wirat Lertpaitoonpan. ACAPHEI 2024 activities will be held in Bangkok, Thailand with a new concept, namely Sandbox: Sharing of Good Practice and Exploring Potential Collaboration.