ABEST21 e-News
No.122, January-June 2023
ABEST21 International
THE ALLIANCE ON BUSINESS EDUCATION AND SCHOLARSHIP FOR TOMORROW,
a 21st century organization

URL: www.abest21.org TEL.+81-3-3498-6220 E-Mail: abest21international@abest21.org
Editor: Fumio ITOH

eNews No.122: Contents＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

I. ABEST21 General Information･････････････････････････････････････････････ 1
II. “Assessing Today for Tomorrow” ･････････････････････････････････････････ 10
III. “Assuring Quality for Tomorrow” ･････････････････････････････････････････ 13
IV. ABEST21 Global Knowledge Network･･･････････････････････････････････････ 14

I. ABEST21 General Information＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

1. ABEST21 Office Report
January
・17th : Holding the online Accreditation Committee
・20th : Holding the 42nd online meeting of ABEST21 Council for Human Resource Development
February
・06th : Holding the Financial Audit Meeting
・06th : Holding the online Financial Audit meeting
・15th : Holding the online ABEST21 Board of Trustees
March・09th-10th : Holding ABEST21 Annual Meeting, Kyoto, Japan・11th : Conducting the Kyoto Study Tour, Kyoto Japan・14th : Visit to the United Nations University (UNU)
・15st : Conducting the online Accreditation Seminar II on “SCR”
・16th : Conducting the online Accreditation Seminar II on “KZR”
・17th : Visit to Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan (MAFF)
・20th : Visit to Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
・22nd : Conducting the online Accreditation Seminar II on APAS-“QIS”
・23rd : Conducting the online Accreditation Seminar II on APAS-“PAA”
・24th : Reporting on the Accreditation Results to Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science1and Technology of Japan (MEXT)
・27th : Publishing a press release on the Accreditation Results to the press club at MEXT
・29th : Holding the online Accreditation Seminar II on the AAAS-“QIS”
April
・11th : Conducting the online individual Accreditation Seminar II on APAS-“PAA”
May
・17th : Visit to JICA
・18th : Visit to UNU
June
・09th : Visit to JICA
・12th : Meeting with Malaysian Qualification Agency in Japan
・15th : Visit to UNU
・15th : Conducting the online Seminar for FBA of the Republic of Uzbekistan
・21st : Visit to MAFF

2. Holding the ABEST21 Audit meeting 2023
On Monday, February 6, 2023, ABEST21
International Financial Audit Meeting 2023 was heldin person and online. Firstly, the materials including“the Statement of Revenue and Expenditure 2022”and “the Balance Sheet 2022” for the period fromJanuary 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022 wereconfirmed by ABEST21 Auditor Professor Dr. Hua Xu
at the ABEST21 office. Then, as a result of the audit
held, the online ABEST21 Audit meeting 2023 washeld and the auditors confirmed that the current fiscal report
showed the settlement of accounts for the said period properly.
The ABEST21 Auditing Committee includes three auditors:
・Professor Dr. Hua Xu
MBA Program in International Business, Graduate School ofBusiness Sciences, Humanities and Social Sciences,
University of Tsukuba, Japan・Professor Gagaring Pagalung, Ph.D.
Faculty of Economics and Business,
Universitas Hasanuddin, Indonesia
・Former Dean Professor Nor’Azam Mastuki, Ph.D.
Arshad Ayub Graduate Business School,
Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia
ABEST21 International Statement of Revenue and Expenditure(January 1, 2022-December 31, 2022) in the Annual Report 2023 is available to the public:
ABEST21 International Annual Report 2023 URL: https://www.abest21.org/about/report/

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3. Holding the Board of Trustees 2023
On Wednesday, February 15, 2023, online
ABEST21 International Board of Trustees Meeting2023 was held. Based on the materials provided inadvance, and following the detailed explanation by
ABEST21 International President and the exchangeof opinions, the ABEST21 International Financial
Statement FY2022, the ABEST21 International
Budget for FY2023, and other materials werediscussed. The members were also informed about
the ABEST21 International Business Accomplishment 2022, the ABEST21 International Accreditation
March 2023, and the ABEST21 KAIZEN Awards 2023. All items were accepted.

4. Appointment of ABEST21 International President and Executive
Committee due to termination of the term
Upon the termination of the term, executive members were elected following the ABEST21 Bylaw
Article 21.

3ABEST21 International Executive Committee Members(Term: from April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2025)

President and CEO
Professor Emeritus Dr. Fumio ITOH
Former Dean of Graduate School of International Management,
Aoyama Gakuin University, Japan

Vice Presidents
Former Dean Professor Robert Sullivan, Ph.D.
Rady School of Management,
University of California San Diego, USA

Dean Prof. Dr. Oleg Vikhanskiy
Lomonosov Moscow State University Business School,
Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia

Vice President Dean Prof. Dr. Ali Khatibi
Graduate School of Management,
Management and Science University, Malaysia

Dean Teguh Dartanto, Ph.D.
Faculty of Economics and Business,
Universitas Indonesia, Indonesia

4Assistant to the ABEST21 International President
Director and CEO Shigemi OKAYASUSTC SHIPPING PTE LTD, Singapore

Auditors
Prof. Dr. Xu Hua
MBA Program in International Business, Graduate School of Business
Sciences, Humanities and Social Sciences,
University of Tsukuba, Japan

Prof. Gagaring Pagalung, Ph.D.
Facuty of Economics and Business,
Universitas Hasanuddin, Indonesia

Former Dean Prof. Nor’Azam Mastuki, Ph.D.
Arshad Ayub Graduate Business School,
Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia

Advisors(Legal Relations)
Lawyer Prof. Dr. Masayuki TANAMURA
Graduate School of Law,
Waseda University, Japan

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(Management)
Former Dean Visiting Professor Dr. Hirotaka KAWANO
Graduate School of Management,
Kyoto University, Japan(Accreditation)
Former President and CEO Dr. Zulkornain Yusop
Putra Business School, Malaysia(Accounting)
Former Dean Koichi SAITO
Faculty of Business Administration,
Nanzan University, Japan(Taxation Business)
Licensed Tax Accountant Director Takanori SAISUSAISU Certified Tax Accountant Office, Japan

ABEST21 International Office
Executive Manager Yuka NAKAGAWA, MBA
ABEST21 International

65. New Deans
Prof. Dr. Heru Sulistyo, S.E., M.Si.
Faculty of Economics, Universitas Islam Sultan Agung, Indonesia
Prof. Dr. Heru Sulistyo, S.E., M.Si. is a Professor of Strategic
Management and a senior researcher at the Department ofManagement, Faculty of Economics, Universitas Islam Sultan Agung(UNISSULA) Semarang, Indonesia. He was born in Pontianak,Indonesia, in 1967, and graduated from the Faculty of Economics,
Universitas Islam Sultan Agung (UNISSULA), Indonesia, in 1992. Hereceived his Master of Science from Gadjah Mada University,
Indonesia, and completed his Doctoral dissertation at Universitas
Airlangga Surabaya, Indonesia, in 2010. Heru started his career as alecturer in 1993 and then served in several administrative positions,beginning in 2001 as the head of Department of Management, in 2013 as the Director of the
Postgraduate Program, in 2016 as the head of research and community service at Universitas Islam
Sultan Agung (UNISSULA), the head of Master of Management Program in 2021 and the Dean of
the Faculty from 2022 to present. His articles and books have been published nationally andinternationally in reputable outlets. He also became a speaker in various scientific forums globally.
His teaching interest and research areas are Human Resource Management, Knowledge
Management, Organizational Behavior, and Strategic Management.

Chair Prof. Dr. Rémy Magnier-Watanabe
MBA Program in International Business, Graduate School of Business Sciences,
University of Tsukuba, JapanThe MBA Program in International Business (MBA-IB) has a new
Chair. Dr. Rémy Magnier-Watanabe was elected for a 2-year term
starting April 1, 2023. Dr. Hua Xu, his predecessor, will take anacademic sabbatical leave to focus on research after several years ofdedicated service to the program. Dr. Remy Magnier-Watanabe has
been a member of the program since 2008, first as Assistant Professor,
then as Associate Professor, and since 2022 as Professor ofInternational Business. Previously, he also supported former Chair Dr.
Hua Xu as vice-Chair of the program.
Dr. Magnier-Watanabe is originally from France, but has lived andstudied in three countries: he graduated from Grenoble Ecole deManagement in France (BS, MS), holds an MBA from the Georgia Institute of Technology in the
United States, and received his PhD in Industrial Engineering and Management from the Tokyo
Institute of Technology in Japan. He also spent one year on academic sabbatical in the Program on
US-Japan Relations at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University in
Cambridge, Massachusetts, conducting research on Japanese FDI in the United States. Chair Prof.
Dr. Magnier-Watanabe’s research focuses on knowledge management, cross-cultural management,
foreign direct investment, and subjective well-being at work. Prior to his academic career, he worked
as Training Department Manager in the United States for a leading French manufacturer ofpackaging equipment and lines for beverages packaged in PET, where he developed a growinginterest for applied management research.
The University of Tsukuba was established in October 1973, due to the relocation to the Tsukuba
area of its predecessor, the Tokyo University of Education, itself founded in 1872. MBA-IB was
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launched in April 2005 as a Professional Degree Program located on the University of Tsukuba’sTokyo campus for adults with working experience. Coursework for MBA-IB is typically completed
over two years with classes held on weekday evenings and on Saturdays. The program’s mission is“developing ambitious individuals into responsible global business leaders”. To further this aim, allclasses are taught in English and half of the faculty is made up by foreign professors and businessleaders. The student body is also diverse with students from various countries and professional
backgrounds. The program offers a wide range of courses and an opportunity to conduct anindividualized Business Project aimed at assisting students’ career plans. The academic degree
presented to graduating students is a Master of International Business Administration.

6. New School Members
Dean Associate Prof. Dr. Mohd. Rahimie Bin Abd. Karim
Faculty of Business, Economics and Accountancy
Universiti Malaysia Sabah
Faculty of Business, Economics, and Accountancy (FBEA) of Universiti
Malaysia Sabah (UMS) was founded in 1995 with the vision of becoming
a reputable faculty through impactful innovation and engagement. The
mission of the faculty is to produce graduates who can meet businessand community needs in dealing with global changes. The faculty's
strive for excellence is vested through scholarly endeavors forknowledge advancement and collaboration with various stakeholders byapplying contemporary knowledge. The faculty is driven by its corevalues - professionalism, collaboration, inclusivity and innovativeness.
All undergraduate and postgraduate programs offered by FBEA are
accredited by the Malaysian Qualification Agency (MQA) and relevant professional bodies. FBEA
provides a range of programs from bachelor’s degree to Doctor of Philosophy in the field of business,
economics, accountancy as well as hospitality and tourism management. Over the years, FBEA
successfully produced graduates who have become valuable assets in numerous sectors andindustries worldwide. Spearheading research and publications particularly in Sabah-Malaysia, andthe island of Borneo, FBEA has organized various seminars and conferences related to business,
economics, accountancy and hospitality and tourism management. With the ambition of becoming
a reputable business faculty, FBEA has received numerous international recognitions and awards,
and maintains collaborations with various stakeholders including educational institutions,professional bodies, and industries.
FBEA is committed to working together with business schools/faculties around the globe for mutual
benefits. FBEA believes that such engagement will provide significant value added to students andacademics through sharing of experience, knowledge and best practices across different countries
and cultures. FBEA welcomes any proposals for joint cooperation in research and publications,teaching and learning, and student affairs activities such as academics exchange, student mobility,
joint research and organizing international conferences/seminars. We cordially invite our fellow
business schools/faculties to visit our beautiful campus in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah-Malaysia andexperience the warm UMS’ hospitality.

87. Signing of Memorandum of Understanding with
Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) on August 3, 2023
On Monday, June 12th, 2023, President Fumio ITOH had a meetingwith CEO of Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA), Prof. Dato’ Dr.
Mohammad Shatar Bin Sabran and Deputy CEO of MQA Prof. Ir. Dr.
Khairul Salleh Bin Mohamed Sahari at Grand Prince Hotel Takanawa,
Tokyo, Japan. As a result, they came to an agreement to work on the
renewal of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between MQA andABEST21 International and agreed that the signing ceremony of thesaid MoU is going to be held on Thursday, August 3, 2023 in Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia. The main areas of co-operation covered by thememorandum are 1) exchange of operational information, b)
exchange of information on status of accreditation, c) mutual
understanding of approaches to enhance the understanding of quality
assurance in higher education, d) quality system to ensure the role ofboth agencies, e) promotion of developmental opportunities for the staff of both agencies, f)
engaging reviewers from both parties, g) collaborate accreditation programs, h) sharing Good
Practice Data base, etc. Detailed information about the signing ceremony is forthcoming.

8. Holding Online Seminar for an academic of the Republic of
Uzbekistan
On Thursday, June 15th, 2023, the online seminar foran academy of the Republic of Uzbekistan that is looking
to expand their horizons by seeking internationalrecognition. In response to the institution’s request,
President Fumio ITOH introduced overview of ABEST21
International Accreditation and the Accreditation review
process and Associate professor Dr. Yudi Fernando,
Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Malaysia explained ABEST21
Accreditation philosophy and shared his experience with
ABEST21 International.

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II. “Assessing Today for Tomorrow”＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

1. Holding the online ABEST21 Accreditation Committee 2023
Following the recommendation from the Peer
Review Committee on accreditation results, theonline Accreditation Committee (AC) 2023 washeld on January 17, 2023. Based on the materials
provided in advance, the AC discussed theAccreditation Results Recommendation 2023, andnomination for the KAIZEN Award and othermatters in details. All the results accepted by the
AC were recommended to the online ABEST21
International Board of Trustees held on February
15, 2023.

2. Schools accredited in March 2023
The online Board of Trustees meeting held on February 15, 2023 accepted the schools to beaccredited as recommended by the Accreditation Committee. The accredited schools for March 2023
are listed below.

・Master of Business Administration Program,
Department of Business Administration, SBI Graduate School, Tokyo, JapanThe SBI graduate school has been founded on a lofty philosophy of creating an institution oflearning that has been laid down by the school’s founder and President Yoshitaka Kitao. His
enunciated principle in education is: while developing expert human assets in the field of practicalbusiness management, the school’s curriculum emphasizes edification of moral philosophy. The
MBA program endeavors to foster human assets competent to create new business, while the school
actively tries to apply the research and educational achievements to the actual scenes of business
operations.

・Master of Management Program, Faculty of Economics and Business
Universitas Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia
Master of Management Study Program, Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Indonesia(MM-FEBUI) is a tertiary education program under the Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB UI)that offers education at the Master’s level (or “S2” level in the Indonesian education system) andProfessional Education program. MM-FEBUI was established based on the assignment of theGovernment through the Ministry of Education and Culture to the Universitas Indonesia. This school
was officially established on October 8th, 1988. On October 7, 1988, MM-FEBUI was officially opened
with an inaugural lecture for the first batch of students given by Prof. Dr. Ali Wardhana. At the timeof its opening, the school offered two concentrations, namely International Management andManagement Accounting. In the first years of program implementation, MM-FEBUI also received
assistance from teaching staff from the Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley.

・Master of Management Program, Faculty of Business and Economics
Universitas Surabaya, Surabaya, Indonesia
UBAYA is one of the private universities that received an “A” institutional accreditation score (thehighest accreditation score possible) institutional accreditation score from NBAN-PT (Badan
Akreditasi Nasional-Perguruan Tinggi). The University of Surabaya, Faculty of Business and10Economics (UBAYA FBE) was established in 1968, as one of three pioneering faculties in UBAYA. The
Faculty has the largest number of students amongst seven current faculties, contributing one-thirdof the total student body in UBAYA. As the biggest faculty, its cash flow is the highest among others,
and its financial contribution to the university is also the highest. The school has almost 5,000 alumni
across Indonesia, and the students represent diverse areas of expertise, with 40% fresh graduates
and 60% managers and entrepreneurs.

・Master of Business Administration - Global Program
S P Jain School of Global Management, Singapore Campus, Singapore
S P Jain School of Global Management (S P Jain) is a private, free-standing business school thatwas established in 2004 with global vision. In 2009, the School was registered as a Higher Education
Provider (HEP) by the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA), Australia. With theaim of providing our students with a thorough understanding of the global context of business, theschool set up four campuses in Sydney, Singapore, Dubai and Mumbai with just over 2000 students(headcount) studying across the four campuses. The school is governed centrally from Sydney under
the direction and oversight of the common Board of Directors (Board), Academic Board (AB) andvision and mission statements.
For the accreditation result of these accredited schools, please visit our webpage below:
https://www.abest21.org/accreditation/

3. Holding the ABEST21 Online Accreditation Seminar II for 2023
The Online Accreditation Seminars II for Accreditation 2023 were held in March in order to support
applicant schools/faculties in their preparation for accreditation. These seminars aim to provide
clarification on the objectives of each stage (PAA, QIS, SCR, KZR) in ABEST21 International
Accreditation process and understanding of the important matters necessary for preparing eachreport.

1) The online Accreditation Seminar II for SCR 2023
On Wednesday, March 15th, the online
Accreditation Seminar II for SCR 2023 was held.
After introduction on the ABEST21 Accreditation
Process by Professor Emeritus Dr. Fumio ITOH,
President of ABEST21 International, AssistantProfessor Dr. Hen Kai Wah, Tunghai University,
explained the objective of Self-Check/SelfEvaluation Report, how the report is reviewed by
the Peer Review Team with Desk Review andonline Peer Review Visit, and issues to be noted on preparation of the report. Then, ABEST21
President Fumio ITOH presented further details of the SCR analysis according to the criteria
necessary to conduct SCR. After that, Peer Review Schedule, clerical matters to be noted on
submitting SCR such as format and check list were presented by the ABEST21 Accreditation Office.
The presentations were followed by the Q&A session.

112) The online Accreditation Seminar II for QIS (APAS) 2023
On Wednesday, March 22nd, the online
Accreditation Seminar II for QIS (APAS) was held.
It opened with the message from Professor
Emeritus Dr. Fumio ITOH, President of ABEST21
International,
introducing
theABEST21
Accreditation Process. Then, Associate Professor
Dr. Yudi Fernando, Universiti Malaysia Pahang,
Malaysia talked about the objective of QIS and
PAA, contents of QIS and characteristics of goodreport. After that, President Fumio ITOH explained about the stages of “Initial Accreditation” and“Re-accreditation” related to the period of quality assurance, Peer Review Schedule and Outcome of
the Accreditation. Then the ABEST21 Accreditation Office, informed the participants about the points
be checked before submitting the report, how to submit the report using “ABEST21 Post” and theschedule including online Interview.

3) The online Accreditation Seminar II for PAA (APAS) 2023
On Thursday, March 23rd, the online Accreditation
Seminar II for PAA (APAS) was held.
Firstly, Associate Professor Dr. Yudi Fernando,
Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Malaysia describedabout the objective of QIS and PAA, contents of
PAA and important guideline for preparing thereport. Then, Professor Emeritus Dr. Fumio ITOH,
President of ABEST21 International, explained ABEST21 International Accreditation System thatconsists of AAAS and APAS, terms of “Initial Accreditation” and “Re-accreditation” related to theeffective period of quality assurance, Peer Review Process of Initial Accreditation and Outcome of
the Accreditation. ABEST21 Accreditation Office informed the participants about the Schedule of Peer
Review including the online Interview, how to submit the report using designated Format and Check
List. Also, the information about “ABEST21 Post” to be used for submission and website page
“Schools pursuing ABEST21 Accreditation only” was given. The presentations were followed by anactive Q&A session.

4) The online Accreditation Seminar II for QIS (AAAS) 2023
On Wednesday, March 29th, the online
Accreditation Seminar II for QIS (AAAS) was held.
It opened with the message from Professor
Emeritus Dr. Fumio ITOH, President of ABEST21
International,
introducing
theABEST21
Accreditation Process. Then, Professor Dr. Ming-Yu
Cheng, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia,
explained the concept of AAAS, Re-Accreditation,
contents of QIS and matters to be noted on
writing QIS report. Furthermore, the Peer Review
System and Schedule were described by President Fumio ITOH. After that, ABEST21 Accreditation
Office, presented points to be checked before submitting the report, the procedure of submitting thereport using “ABEST21 Post” and the schedule including online Interview.
12ABEST21 International Accreditation Unit invites all applicant schools of ABEST21 International
Accreditation in 2023 to visit exclusive website page “Schools pursuing ABEST21 International
Accreditation only” and check the Bulletin Board from time to time to have the updated information.
Individual Seminars for applicants and extraordinary ones could be arranged if requested. Pleasecontact ABEST21 Accreditation Unit if there are any inquiries.

III. “Assuring Quality for Tomorrow”＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

1. ABEST21 KAIZEN Award in March, 2023
ABEST21 accredits schools in the full confidence that their Action Plans to improve the KAIZEN
issues found in the analysis of the plans to improve the KAIZEN issues found in the analysis of the
Self-Check/Self-Evaluation Report are promising. Since one of the aims of ABEST21 accreditation is
to assure a substantial improvement of the educational quality to the stakeholders, we need to checkthe progress of the accredited schools on their Action Plans found in the analysis of the SCR, andprovide a status report to the stakeholders. If the School performed all or most of the Action Plans
and made an innovative improvement in the quality of the management education, ABEST21 would
like to recognize the school’s performance by giving it the “KAIZEN Award”. The Award is endowed
based on the recommendation of the Accreditation Committee. The online Board of Trustees meeting
held on February 15, 2023 ratified the accredited schools to be granted “KAIZEN Award”. Following
this decision, ABEST21 KAIZEN Award plaque was granted to the three schools:
・Master of Business Administration Program and Master of Science in Finance Program
Graduate School of Business and Finance, Waseda University, Japan・Master in Business Administration Program, Arshad Ayub Graduate Business School
Universiti Teknologi MARA, Selangor, Malaysia
・Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Brawijaya, Indonesia
We congratulate the schools on their achievement in continuous improvement.

2. The online Accreditation Seminar II for KZR 2023
On Thursday, March 16th, the online Accreditation
Seminar II for KZR was held. At first, Associate
Professor Danaipong Chetchosak, Ph.D., Khon Kaen
University, Thailand explained the contents of the
KZR, matters to be noted when writing the reportand how the Peer Review Team review is organized.
Professor Emeritus Dr. Fumio ITOH, President of
ABEST21 International, described furthermore
about the KZR which contains the performance of
the Action Plans shown after SCR. Also, he explained about the Review Process of the KZR and
Ranking done on approving the KZR. After that, Peer Review Schedule, clerical matters to be notedon submitting KZR, how to submit the report using “ABEST21 Post” were presented by the ABEST21
Accreditation Office. At last, the Q&A session was conducted.

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For supporting to the accredited schools that are going to submit the KAIZEN Report in 2023,
ABEST21 International Accreditation Unit holds individual online seminars if requested. Pleasecontact ABEST21 Accreditation Unit if there are any inquiries.

IV. ABEST21 Global Knowledge Network＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

1. The Council for Nurturing Global Management Professionals
The online 42nd meeting of Japan Council for
Nurturing Global Management Professionals washeld on Friday, January 20, 2023. At first, Director
General Shigeki FUKUDA, Japan International
Cooperation Agency made a presentation with atitle of “Integrated initiatives of human resource
development in developing nations and nurturing“GLOCAL” human resource in Japan”. Following his
presentation, active Q&A session was conducted.
After that, a discussion about higher education of Japan was held, based on the materials preparedby the Subcommittee of the Central Council for Education that had been provided by the Office forProfessional Graduate School, Technical Education Division, Higher Education Bureau, MEXT of Japanin advance.

2. Holding the ABEST21 International General Assembly 2023

Inamori hall, Shiran Kaikan, Kyoto University

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ABEST21 International Annual Meeting 2023 was held for thethree days from March 9, 2023 at “Inamori Hall”, Shiran kaikan,
Kyoto University, Kyoto Japan. The Annual meeting, which had
been held online for three years due to the Covid-19 pandemic,
was now held in person, and forty representatives from
ABEST21 International school members participated in themeeting. The program schedule of the conference was asfollows.

Day 1: Thursday, March 9
Opening Remarks
Professor Emeritus Dr. Fumio ITOH
President and CEO ABEST21 International
ABEST21 President delivered opening remarks and explained
about the main objective of the Annual Meeting 2023.

Welcome Message
Associate Professor Keiji MURAKAMI, Ph.D.
Graduate
School of Management, Kyoto University, Japan
Associate Professor Keiji MURAKAMI delivered a welcome
message to our members and made a brief introduction ofboth Kyoto University and Graduate School of Management.
He pointed out that Kyoto University has produced 11 Nobel
Prize winners and impacted character of the education andresearch of the Graduate School of Management.

Granting the New School Membership Certificate
Dean Associate Professor Dr. Geoffrey Harvey Tanakinjal, theDean of Labuan Faculty of International Finance, Universiti
Malaysia Sabah, which joined ABEST21 International last
October, received the New School Membership Certificate ina certificate-granting ceremony.

15

Granting the ABEST21 International Accreditation Certificate March 2023

The Accreditation Certificate were presented by President Fumio ITOH to the representatives of thefollowing schools that received ABEST21 International Accreditation in March, 2023:
・Department of Business Administration, SBI Graduate School, Japan・Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Indonesia, Indonesia
・Faculty of Business and Economics, Universitas Surabaya, Indonesia
・SP Jain School of Global Management, Singapore

Dean Prof. Dr. KOBAYASHI Hideyuki

Dean Teguh Dartanto, Ph.D.

16

Dean Prof. Dr. A. Seetharaman

Granting the KAIZEN Award

The crystal trophies of KAIZEN Award were granted to the four schools that received the Award in
2022 and 2023 by President ITOH. The School received the Award in 2022 and 2023 as follows:
2022
・Faculty of Economics, Universitas Sriwijaya, Indonesia
2023
・Graduate School of Business and Finance, Waseda University, Japan・Arshad Ayub Graduate Business School, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia
・Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Brawijaya, Indonesia
At the end of the first day, participants gave their congratulations to the accredited schools and theschools that won the KAIZEN Award.

Dean Dr. Idqan Fahmi,
SB IPB, Indonesia

Dean Prof. Zafir Khan Bin
Mohamad Makhbul
GSB UKM, Malaysia

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Dean Prof. Dr. Hj. Nuny Nur Afiah
FEB UNPAD, Indonesia

Dean Dr. Vichayanan
Rattanawiboonsom
FBEC,NU, Thailand

Dr. Tifa Noer Amelia
Perbanas, Indonesia

Day 2: Friday, March 10
Memorial Session
ABEST21 Vice President Professor Ilker Baybars, Ph.D.
We announced with deep sadness that our Vice President and
Deputy Dean Emeritus Professor Dr. Ilker Baybars, Carnegie
Mellon University, had passed away on December 23, 2022. So,
we held the memorial session in deep memory of Vice President
Dr. Ilker Baybars.
At first, ABEST21 Vice President Professor Dr. Ali Khatibi
expressed his condolences. Then, Professor Dr. Hiroshi
TAKAMORI, LEC University, Japan shared his memories of thedeceased. After that ABEST21 President Fumio ITOH related his
memories of the deceased, sharing memorable photos. At the endof his speech, our President said that we will remember Dr. Ilker
Baybars for his hard work and dedication during the founding of
ABEST21, for his collegiality, for his forward-looking thinking, andhis keen ability to engage with and collaborate with international members of ABEST21. Finally, Ms.
Cigdem Baybars responded to them at the end of session. May he rest in peace.

Prof. Ali Khatibi

Prof. Hiroshi TAKAMORI

President Prof. Fumio ITOH

ABEST21 President Professor Emeritus Dr. ITOH published a special issue of ABEST21 e-News indeep memory of Vice President Ilker Baybars. The URL to read the article is as follows:
https://www.abest21.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/enews121.pdf

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School Presentations
The accredited schools and KAIZEN Award winning schools made their presentations. They
introduced their schools and shared knowledge obtained through ABEST21 Accreditation as well as
their experiences through ABEST21 KAIZEN. The speakers and titles of their presentations were as
follows:
Dean Dr. Mohd Asri Mohd Noor
Faculty of Management and Economics,
Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris, Malaysia“Introduction of FME-UPSI”

Dean Dr. Geoffrey Harvey Tanakinjal
Labuan Faculty of International Finance,
Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Malaysia“The role of International Finance in Sustainable
Development and Building Industry-Academic
Collaboration”

Dean Teguh Dartanto, Ph.D.
Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas
Indonesia, Indonesia“FEB UI’s ABEST21 Accreditation Journey:
Challenge, Progress and Transformation”

Dean Professor Dr. Arumugam Seetharaman
SP Jain School of Global Management, Singapore“Reimagining Business Education throughDisruptive Innovation”

19Dean Professor Hitoshi TAKEHARA, Ph.D.
Graduate School of Business and Finance,
Waseda University, Japan“Waseda Business School-the Past and the
Future”

Vice Dean Ainur Rofiq, Ph.D.
Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas
Brawijaya, Indonesia“ABEST21 Accreditation-KAIZEN Universitas
Brawijaya”

Closing Remarks
ABEST21 Vice President Professor Dr. Ali Khatibi
Senior Vice President, Management & Science University, Malaysia
ABEST21 Vice President Teguh Dartanto, Ph.D.
Dean, Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Indonesia, Indonesia

Day 3: Saturday, March 11
Kyoto Study Tour (Optional Tour)It was a beautiful sunny day with a clear blue sky. A tour bus departed from the Prince Hotel
Takaragaike to visit Kinkakuji “Golden Pavilion”, Ryoan-ji “The Rock Garden” and Nijo-jo “Nijo Castle”
on Saturday, March 11. About 30 participants from ABEST21 School Members joined the tour. Ms.
Rara Ikeuchi, Ms. Akane Fujisaki and Ms. Kaoru Tobe explained about each destination with brief
introduction in the bus. We hope all the participants enjoyed coming in to contact with traditionalvarious Japanese culture.

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3. SB-IPB Study Program in Japan“International Exposure in Business and Management”
On May 17 and 18, 2023, a group of 32 doctoral students from the School of Business, IPB
University (SB IPB Univ.), Indonesia visited Headquarters of Japan International Corporate Agency(JICA) in Kojimachi and UNU Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) in Shibuya.
This visit served as part of SB IPB University’s study tour named “International Exposure in Businessand Management” led by Vice Dean Dr. Nimmi Zubainarni, IPB University, Indonesia. The theme ofthe study tour was “Globalization and Cultural Diversity: Navigating Difference for Sustainable
Success”.

Visit to JICA
With the courtesy of JICA and Mr. Kotaro KIMURA, Deputy Director, Technology Policy Office, Policy
Planning Division, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan, the IPB Students visitedthe headquarters of JICA Headquarters on Wednesday and took lectures by MAFF, JICA and KEY
COFFEE, INC.
The program of their visit on May 17 was as follows.
Moderator: Mr. Naoki MATSUDA
Economic Development Department, Agricultural and Rural
Development Group 2, JICA

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Opening Remarks
Mr. Masahiko TAKIZAWA, Deputy Director General for Planning
and Training Affairs, Domestic Strategy and Partnership
Department, JICA

Session I - MAFF Lecture:“Development of Smart Agriculture”
Mr. Kotaro KIMURA, Deputy Director
Te c h n o l o g y Po l i c y O f f i c e , Po l i c y P l a n n i n g D i v i s i o n ,Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan
Mr. KIMURA introduced the cases of agriculture using
advanced technologies such as robots, AI and IoT in Japan. After
his presentation, the participants discussed more about ClimateSmart Agriculture.

Session II - JICA Lecture:“JICA’s Standpoint of the Cooperationin Smart Agriculture and Smart Food Value Chain”
Mr. Daichi BAN, Economic Development Department,
Ag ri cul t ural and R ural D ev el o p m ent , Gr o up 1, J ICA
Mr. BAN introduced JICA activities for the development of Smart
Food Chain in some countries using some examples of projects.
After his presentation, the participants discussed how JICA has
supported the development of the Smart Food Chain inIndonesia.
“What is JICA doing with international students”
Ms. Nonoka KAWAMURA, Economic Development Department,
Agricultural and Rural Development, Group 1, JICA
Ms. KAWAMURA introduced one of JICA’s activities named
Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable
Development (SATREPS). The purpose of SATREPS is thedevelopment of human resources of public and private sectors
and enhancement of a human network between developing
countries and Japan.
After her presentation, the participants discussed the details of JICA’s support in the area of funding
issues and other matters.

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Session III – KEY COFFEE Presentation“Sustainable Coffee Production in Toraja, Indonesia”
Ms. Naoko ARINAGA, Future if Coffee Department,
KEY COFFEE, INC., Japan
Ms. ARINAGA presented the coffee production business inIndonesia and the current situation concerning the impact of theclimate change on coffee production. Also, she shared theinformation about a JICA project in Traja. After her presentation,
the participants discussed about more details about the current
issue of continuing coffee production in Indonesia and other matters.

Closing Remarks:
Dr. Nimmi Zulbainarni, Vice Dean, School of Business
IPB University, Indonesia

Visit to UNU-IAS on Thursday, May 18
With earnest cooperation of Mr. Takashi ASAI, Managing Director, Secretary General, JapanFoundation for United Nations University, the IPB students visited UNU-IAS on Thursday, May 18.

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The program was as follows:
Session I - Introductory Session“Introduction UNU-IAS”
Kensuke FUKUSHI, Ph.D., Academic Program
Advisor, UNU-IAS
He introduced about UNU’s Mission, Uniqueness, theeducation program, and other interesting facts. He
explained that the mission of the UNU-IAS is “to meet thepressing challenges for achieving sustainability that are ofconcern to the United Nations and its Member states.”
Session II - Group Discussion with UNU Students and IPB University Students:“Globalization and Cultural Diversity: Navigating Difference for Sustainable Success”
Chaired by Mark McCathy Akrofi, D3, UNU
UNU students joined this session to have a group discussion with IPB Students. The Group
Discussion was led by Mark McCathy Akrofi, a student of UNU. The IPB students shared their ideas
and actively exchanged their opinions on “Globalization and Cultural Diversity: Navigating Differenceof Sustainable Success” with some UNU students actively.

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Following is comments from the IPB Students.
・Interesting discussion and sharing from each countries.
・Fruitful discussion with great facilitator
・Just want to thank you again for the informative and very enjoyable day you provided us withwhen we visited the MAFF /JICA / UNU. I feel that the knowledge we gained enables our people
to be comfortable doing something more meaningful in the near future. Tell them how impressed
us with the breadth of their knowledge. I couldn’t have had a more delightful host, everything, infact, was perfectly prepared.
・all the meetings and discussion arrangement were excellent. Thru the discussion we could
understand better the role of JICA in Indonesia for all stakeholders. The visit to UN University
really benefited me as I really admired the late Soedjatmoko, an Indonesian who became second
rector of UN University. The discussion with UNU Graduate students reminded us how valuable
this one world that we have・Being able to visit and discuss JICA and UNU was a very valuable experience for us. Not only
getting the opportunity to explore knowledge, but also getting interesting inspiration that can be
implemented when we return. Best of luck to JICA and UNU.
・The lectures from JICA/MAFF and UNU gave us many new insightful perspectives.
・We hope all IPB students got some insights from these study programs in Japan.
・From MAFF we get detailed information about smart agriculture. From UNU we discussed a lot
about the challenges we face in order to achieve the SDGs.
・We are very grateful for this opportunity and thank you for the support provided by ABEST21.
・Both sessions at JICA and UNU were eye opener for us as students to get exposed into international
business landscape. Through JICA we learned how regional coffee value chain works. Whereas at
UNU we learned what are the common sustainable development challenges from different
countries while devising the possible actions to overcome the challenges.

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・Thank you for the highly inspiring sessions at JICA and UNU. Not only were they well-arranged,
but they also provided a wealth of valuable learning experiences. The session with JICA and MAFF
taught us how Japan overcame various limitations and turned them into strengths and advantages,
particularly in the field of agriculture. Meanwhile, the discussion session with UNU's graduate
students broadened our insights into the complexities of sustainable development issues. I hope
there will be more opportunities for students to exchange ideas and share experiences on
platforms like this.
・Warm hospitality and support extended to our group throughout the visit were exemplary. The
seamless organization of the program, the attention to detail, and the thoughtful arrangements
made our experience truly memorable. We felt welcomed and valued as guests, and we are deeply
grateful for the efforts put forth to ensure our visit was fruitful and enjoyable.
・Information sharing and discussion with JICA and UNU provided a lot of insights from otherperspectives for the development of knowledge in the future.
・The discussions at JICA on smart agriculture have enriched our view on how we can equip farmers
with advanced technology, increase productivity, improve crop quality, and maximize their profits.
Our intensive discussions with UNU students have provided us tremendous insight with the latest
issues and concerns on global development related to climate changes, cross-cultural changes,
current trends in political complexity, economic inequality, and sustainable development. All ofthese concerns are essential for public policy planning and for developing smart and sustainable
societies.
・I want to thank you for receiving us so well. The moment of sharing knowledge and experiencethrough meaningful discussions at JICA and UNU is a precious moment that we will always
remember. Hopefully we can meet again on another occasion in the future. I always hope for thebest for all of us.
・It's an excellent lecture.
The IPB University website also provides information on these topics. Please visit following URL toread the article.
URL: Visit Japan, SB IPB University Doctoral Students Explore the Key of Japan's Success in Facing
Challenges and Winning Global Competition | IPB University
We hope all IPB students got some insights from these study experiences in Japan.

From ABEST21 International office
On Friday, March 17, we visited the campus of
Udayana University and had an exchange withstudents of Udayana University. Udayana
University is a national university in Bali,
Indonesia. At first, we had lunch at a restaurant
near the university, where current students
showed us around. There, we talked about theculture of each other's countries and had a goodtime interacting with each other. After that, weparticipated in Dr. Ica Rika Candraningrat’s
economics class and gave a presentation. We
talked about student life in Japan and what we are studying at the university. Also, we sang Japanesesongs. The students were very knowledgeable about Japanese culture, and we were happy to hear
their good reactions when we talked about Japan. We learned a lot by talking about each other's
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culture and lifestyle, and it expanded our perspectives. We would like to continue to actively learn
about other cultures in the future. We would like to thank Dean Agoes Ganesha Rahyuda, Ph.D., Dr.
Ica Rika Candraningrat, Ni Niyoman Ayu Diantini, Ph.D. and the students of Udayana University for
their cooperation.
(Reported by Ms. Akane FUJISAKI and Ms. Rara IKEUCHI, ABEST21 International Staff,
Department of English, College, Aoyama Gakuin University, Tokyo Japan)

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