HAAGA-HELIA is representing the higher education sector during prime minister’s visit to Asia

HAAGA-HELIA University of Applied Sciences is the sole representative of the higher education sector during a visit to Asia by the prime minister and corporate delegates on 15-18 November.   

Prime minister Vanhanen is heading a corporate delegation on a tour to promote business in Vietnam and Singapore this week. The itinerary will involve not only official meetings by the prime minister, but also several business seminars and visits to companies and universities.  HAAGA-HELIA was the only Finnish institute of higher education invited to participate in the delegation thanks to the strength of its international network.  Boarding the plane to Asia from HAAGA-HELIA are Ritva Laakso-Manninen, President and Managing Director, Lauri Tuomi, Director, Research and Development Centre, and Terttu Honkasaari, Director, Information Technology Education Unit.

Exporting education and innovation
“The idea to invite a representative from the higher education sector came from the prime minister’s office,” says Lauri Tuomi. “The higher education systems of Asia’s emerging economies are continuously evolving. This provides Finnish institutes of higher education with an opportunity to export higher education, and HAAGA-HELIA already has export-ready degree programmes in place.” 

HAAGA-HELIA is Finland's biggest private institute of higher education with focus on business practice, business cooperation and business development, which is of interest to countries developing their innovation systems. HAAGA-HELIA has also launched an Asia strategy involving the development of new business opportunities in cooperation with local institutes of higher education and companies. Similar initiatives have already been successfully launched in India and China, and the aim is to take the cooperation model further also during this visit.  

“We have already been contacted by high-ranking institutes of higher education in the area, which indicates that interest in Finnish higher education can be found in Asia. We believe that cooperation with HAAGA-HELIA can be fruitful in many ways. There has been a lot of interest in innovation system development, for example, which is an area in which we definitely want to participate,” says Lauri Tuomi.  “Our participation in the delegation also provides us with a great opportunity to meet with representatives from international Finnish companies, and in this way further strengthen our cooperation.”

The delegation visit has been organised by Finpro and the Confederation of Finnish Industries in cooperation with the Prime Minister’s Office.