According to the Lowy Institute Report by Hadrien T. Saperstein, the Summit “offers a unique chance to strengthen Australia’s people-to-people connections through educational ties. The Australian government has long been effective at deploying initiatives in education cooperation, with the result that over half a million Southeast Asian students have studied in Australia in the past twenty years. However, the Australian government’s latest international education policies, such as the New Colombo Plan, approach these ties too much through a market lens. International students are solely viewed in terms of a market opportunity.”
Australia should return to an earlier policy that views education as an important asset to strengthen Australia’s relationships with foreign countries. The Australian government should regard students pursuing academic qualifications from these three countries as a valuable resource to promote diversity, wealth of learning, and cultural relations through education. The government should offer more funding resources and work-integrated learning opportunities to international students from Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, and other Asian countries for a long-range view into the future when, as alumni, these students in their professional careers will continue to take an active part in promoting relations between Australia and their countries on all levels.
https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/asean-summit-chance-australia-reach-out-mainland southeast-asia#msdynttrid=a9dWzTtjVHvRkjHPFiX4i6NbrX-axH5XfGVflT4eTno
