| | | Annual Report 1994 | |
UNU/IIST is increasingly getting tuned in to Governments of the region. Besides the People's Republic of China towards which UNU/IIST has emphasised its 1992-1993 activities, and with which UNU/IIST sincerely believes that it has excellent relations, 1994 has seen the opening of solid contacts with:
The Director of UNU/IIST was graciously invited by various institutions of RoK who together funded a full seven day visit to RoK. The visit included full discussion and meeting sessions with His Excellency the Minister of Science and Technology, Mr. Kim Si-Joong; the President of POSTECH: Pohang University of Science and Technology, Prof. Kim Hogil;20 the President of SERI: the Taejon Systems Engineering, Prof. Kim Moon Hyun; various senior staff at KAIST: Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Profs. Kwon Yong Rae, Cho Jung Wan, and Chon Kilnam; and the President of KISS: the Korean Information Science Society. Prof. Lee Sukho.
The main anchor person in RoK was Prof. Park Chan Mo, POSTECH. Prof. Park is Director of POSTECH/CAST Centre for advanced software technology. UNU/IIST concluded a Memorandum of Understanding with POSTECH/CAST on joint collaboration.
See section IV.1.5.19 for the UN Mission Report on this visit.
UNU/IIST has visited DPRK for the second time (May 1994).21 Plans call for the secondment of two DPRK researchers to UNU/IIST for 6-9 month periods. UNU/IIST is currently seeking funds to finance these Fellowships.
See section IV.1.5.20 for the UN Mission Report on this trip which covered full length afternoon visits five of the leading software and information technology institutions in DPRK.
UNU/IIST made a courtesy call to the DPRK UNDP Resident Representative (and UN System Coordinator) -- and has been able later to help the DPRK UNDP office on matters of their computing equipment as well as assisting them in their assessment of the need for UN support situation in DPRK.
UNU/IIST plans to become involved with University of Indonesia and, through it, with industry groups in a joint Advanced Development MIICI project.
Two (female) University of Indonesia researchers have each been offered six month Fellowships, as from 1.9.94, respectively 2.1.95, at UNU/IIST in Macau.
The Director has been asked to speak at a joint university/industry meeting 12 September on the subject of Software Technology Transfer from University Research to Industry Practice.
See section IV.1.5.22 for the UN Mission Report on the July visit to Indonesia.
UNU/IIST has firm contacts with (i) University Sains Malaysia, Penang, (ii) Institute of Telecommunications and Information Technology, Pelak, and (iii) University Malaysia Sarawak.
Staff from the first two institutions attended the IFIP TC2 WG2.3 Seminar in Macau, January 1994.
UNU/IIST is searching for funds to cover Fellowships from (ii) and plans to visit (iii) with a view towards formulating with (iii) a joint R&D project.
The UNU/IIST Training Workshop and MIICI Field Study Workshop has resulted in joint formulation between UNU/IIST, De La Salle University, Manila, and the Ministry of Science and Technology, of a collaborative project based on the MIICI paradigm. This project has recently received am encouraging statement of willingness to support from the Government of the Philippines.
Dr. Dang Van Hung is currently an 16 month Fellow of UNU/IIST, since 1 April 1994. Mr. Doan Anh Tuan has joined UNU/IIST late October for a 12 month Fellowship. Both are from the (Vietnamese Academy of Sciences) Hanoi Institute of Information Technology -- with whose Director, Prof. Bach Hung Khang UNU/IIST is currently discussing further Vietnam-based collaboration.
UNU/IIST is increasingly oriented, with respect to the UN System, towards Advanced Development Projects and Training:
whose objects, the software application, closely parallels concerns emphasised by the UN System.
Examples are:
This project closely parallels PRC Railway Investment (loan) Programmes as funded by the The World Bank.
This project proposal is joint with UNESCO.
UNU/IIST is most thankful for the continued and useful support received from the UNESCO Directorate for Higher Education. See section 2.1.6.
This project (proposal) is joint with UNIDO.
UNU/IIST is most grateful for the support that UNIDO's Vienna (Austria) HQ is giving us: from the Director General to various Directors and their staff.
This project proposal is joint with UNESCO.
UNU/IIST had some initial difficulty in convincing the relevant UNESCO staff, but, in no small measure thanks to Dr. Oliver Corff, we are now able to thank UNESCO for their support. See section 2.1.7 and appendix 2.4.3.
This project, UNU/IIST sincerely believes, is central to the continued success of the WHO Informatics Programme -- including also its emphasis on Collaborating Health Informatics (i.e. Computing) Centres.
UNU/IIST is most thankful for the support given from the Advisor on Informatics to the DG of WHO. See section 2.1.8.
This project proposal, which is currently put on hold, is crucial, UNU/IIST sincerely believes, to the success of the UNEP/UNDP effort on Agenda/Capacity 21: the Development for Sustainable Environment programme as it evolved from the 1992 Rio UNEP Conference.
UNU/IIST is planning, together with the Canadian Governments IDRC, to arrange a three week Research Study Workshop at UNU/IIST, in Macau, in January 1996, on the topic of GIS & DIS-based DSSs for ESD: that is, geo- & demographic information system based decision support systems for environmentally sustainable development.
With the World Bank UNU/IIST is currently discussing a number of ways and means through which The World Bank can take advantage of UNU/IIST in The World Bank's vast programme involving IT for Development -- and vice versa! Examples -- that are only very tentative -- are:
UNU/IIST is preparing a proposal for UNU/IIST, in collaboration with the leading US and EU institutes of Software Engineering, and in close collaboration with The World Bank, to study future IT/Software Procurement procedures.
UNU/IIST is similarly preparing proposals for its involvement in various forms, including together with the Hanoi Institute of Information Technology, in the Vietnam IT'2000 effort.
The UNU/IIST "Training" is not vocationally oriented, but rather at the educational level of post-graduate and post-doctoral courses. The MIICI Field Study Workshops, however, are clearly in line with one of UNIDO's main concerns: SME's: Small and Mid-sized Enterprises.
In UNU/IIST's many and frequent contacts with the UN System and international aid agencies, we have noted that the software they perceive of as useful in `Development' is such which serve policy planners and decision makers.
In contrast, UNU/IIST's emphasis has up till now been on software that can help commercial operations be more profitable, that can help to create both a domestic and an export software industry, and software that is not specific to Government, nor to UN and other agencies.
UNU/IIST's emerging emphasis on Software Support for Infrastructure Systems seem, however, to straddle the two areas.
UNU/IIST, in synchrony with hopefully improved financial conditions, will continue to spread its attention to a widening circle of countries. It is easy enough to establish the contacts -- it is a more serious matter to follow-up raised expectations in earnest. For that we have to prioritise. The following contacts are presently being evaluated:
Discussions are being held, over the Internet, with Prof. Raul H. Gallard -- Universidad Nacional de San Luis, Proyecto 338403, Local 106, Ejercito de los Andes 950, 5700- San Luis, Argentina -- on how UNU/IIST can best help Universidad Nacional de San Luis: Course Curriculum Development, Training Courses, etc. A proposal has been informally advanced by UNU/IIST on "transferring" the RaCoSy "know-how", using PRC Fellows, to Argentina's railway system.
UNU/IIST is in close (E-Mail) contact with several participating groups in the West African Software Engineering Programme ARIAL -- and is suggesting a two-three week intensive Post Graduate/Doctoral course there in the fall of 1995.
The International Software Technical Centre of the University of Parana, Curitiba, Brazil, is working hard at involving UNU/IIST in its worthwhile activities. At present, UNU/IIST's funding situation, however, is such as to prevent it from following up on this interesting contact.
UNU/IIST is offering to conduct a two-three week advanced course on Parallel Programming during an Regional African Summer School, July 31 to August 11, 1995, at University of Yaoundé.
Dr. Mitra, on behalf of NIIT (Indian National Institute for IT), signed a Memorandum-of-Understanding with UNU/IIST, 26 October 1994. It concerns future collaboration in connection with (other) UNU/IISTevents and courses in India.
In connection with the Burkina Fasso and the Cameroun courses UNU/IIST is also discussing with the National University of Science & Technology in Bulawayo a two week Post Graduate/Doctoral course.
There are other, more loose contacts ongoing.
As of 31 December 1995 UNU/IIST has MoU's with:
These MoU's are concerned with collaboration between the above and UNU/IIST and within the UNU/IIST Programme area: Research and Training.
The Indian TIFR (Tate Institute of Fundamental Research, Bombay) decided, after 14 months of consideration, not to sign a joint Research MoU. This frees UNU/IIST to focus on other, more eager partners.
| | | Annual Report 1994 | |