Reception at the Netherlands Embassy Jakarta
06 Mar 2009
The distinguished setting of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands was the venue for the Holland Education Fair (HEF) and European Higher Education Fair (EHEF) delegation reception on 30 October 2008 hosted by both the Dutch Embassy and Neso Indonesia.
This was the first time that for the welcome reception also the alumni of the participating Dutch HEI’s were invited, and this resulted in a very animated and successful evening attended by over 200 persons.
Mr. H.E. Nikolaus Van Dam, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, welcomed in his opening speech the Dutch HEI representatives and alumni and emphasized the importance of networking and keeping in touch with each other and the university.
Excellent relationship
Neso Indonesia Director Marrik Bellen spoke of the excellent relationship between the Neso office and the Indonesian Ministry of National Education, citing its role in increased cooperation in the alignment of the ministry’s so-called DIKTI scholarship programme. This programme aims to improve the quality of Indonesian university lecturers by awarding postgraduate, PhD and postdoc scholarships for Indonesians to study abroad.
At present more than 90 DIKTI scholarship awardees are enrolled in post-graduate study in the Netherlands, with this number expected to increase in 2009.
Special guest
Special guest at the event was Professor S. Lamberts, Rector Magnificus of Erasmus University Rotterdam, who delivered a speech on behalf of the Dutch representatives. Mr Lamberts referred to the fact that eleven Dutch universities were listed in the Times Higher Education-QS World University Rankings in 2008. This makes Dutch higher education among the best in the world today and emphasizes that Dutch universities have a truly global reputation for high quality and well-organized content.
Earlier that day Mr Lamberts signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the University of Indonesia to intensify academic collaboration between the two institutions.