
UIN Antasari Signs MoU with UKM and PNU Thailand
Thursday (26/10/2021) – UIN Antasari Banjarmasin signed a Memorandom of Understanding (MoU) with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Malaysia and Princess of Naradhiwas University (PNU), Thailand. The signing of the MoU took place virtually through a zoom meeting signed by the Rector of UIN Antasari Prof. Dr. H. Mujiburrahman, MA, Vice Chancellor of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Prof. Dato' Ts Dr. Mohd Ekhwan Toriman and President of Princess of Nardhiwas University Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rossukon Sangmanee. It was also attended and witnessed directly by the leaders of each university. The 5-year Mo.U includes cooperation in staff and student exchanges, workshops and training programs, research and development projects, education programs, and publications.The Vice Chancellor of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Dato Prof. Dr. Mohd Ekhwan Toriman in his remarks congratulated the holding of the 2021 International Conference on Islam, Development and Social Harmony in Southeast ASIA (ICDIS) which was held by the 3 Universities on 7 October 2021 as a first step from the implementation of this Mo.U. “We believe that this mutual agreement both in the academic and research fields will lead to more significant efforts and research contributions. The potentials that can be explored in contemporary Islamic studies, for example, considering the issue of global peace that we continue to face as Muslims and as a global community, especially in our respective countries. We hope that this collaboration will provide many opportunities in the future. We look forward to future collaborations in various fields, especially in research and sharing expertise,” said Prof. Ekhwan.
Similarly, the President of Princess of Naradhiwas University, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rossukon Sangmanee also conveyed the same. “I believe that the relationship we establish between the two institutions is primarily for international education and opens up opportunities for students, faculty and staff who are interested in submitting papers related to Islam, Development and Social Harmony in Southeast Asia. We will be able to achieve more and to be able to continue to develop stronger relations and friendships between PNU, UIN Antasari and UKM” he said.
Meanwhile, the Rector of UIN Antasari on this occasion expressed his happiness that after waiting for some time and carrying out several collaborative activities, finally the moment is delivered, the signing of this Mo.U. “We are Asian countries, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. We are close friends and neighbors, therefore we need to develop mutually beneficial cooperation for all parties. Moreover, cooperation and collaboration cannot be avoided today because our physical and virtual worlds are closely related,” said Mujiburrahman.
Muiburrahman further said that the interconnection between Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand has a very long history, including in the field of Islamic studies. For example, M. Arsyad Al Banjari from Banjarmasin Indonesia is friends with Daud al Fathoni from Thailand. They exchanged works on Islamic teachings with their respective students, and their work is well known among Malay Muslims. “Finally, I hope that this collaboration can be implemented, as written on the cooperation paper. We will be cooperative in teaching and learning education and dissemination of research results, our task is to provide the best education for the younger generation for a bright future”. Mujiburrahman concluded.