On 6 February 2007, NIAD-UE signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA), United Kingdom, with the aim of enhancing the collaboration between the two institutions in the area of quality assurance for higher education.

The signing ceremony took place at the Seri Pacific Hotel Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, taking the opportunity that representatives from both institutions were attending the 2007 Asia-Pacific Quality Network (APQN) Conference and Annual General Meeting. The MoU was signed by Chief Executive Peter Williams from the QAA side, and President Tsutomu Kimura from the NIAD-UE side. After the signing, the delegations discussed their future plan of various collaborative projects.

NIAD-UE has so far promoted mutual exchanges with the QAA through holding seminars and exchanging information, and this MoU was signed under the mutual recognition that it is much important to tackle a big challenge - the need of cross-border quality assurance for rapidly globalizing higher education - by deepening the transnational collaboration between the two institutions.

QAA is an independent body established in 1997, which implements a range of activities such as developing frameworks for quality assurance and reviewing standards and quality of higher education institutions across the UK. In addition, QAA shows high interest in higher education in Asia through taking part in Asia Pacific Quality Network (APQN) as observer and undertaking audits of higher education provisions by UK institutions in China.

Through implementing various projects proposed under the MoU, the two institutions will surely contribute to the developments of higher education in Japan and UK.

Mr. Peter Williams, Chief Executive of QAA (left) and Tsutomu Kimura, President of NIAD-UE

Ceremonial photo with both delegations