Message From The Director

Greetings from the Centre for ASEAN Regionalism Universiti Malaya (CARUM). CARUM was formed in January 2015, the year that Malaysia took over the chairmanship of ASEAN, at a time that ASEAN was increasingly emerging as a global leader in regionalism. ASEAN’s internal development – with three new communities expected to be forged at the end of 2015 under Malaysia’s chairmanship – and ASEAN’s leadership of wider regional initiatives are matters attracting international academic interest. CARUM aims to be a national resource for Malaysia, assisting the country’s regional leadership in policy formulation and implementation to meet the need for ASEAN effectiveness, including in wider regional leadership.

A number of Southeast Asian teaching programmes are currently being offered at Universiti Malaya, and these parallel the multitude of ongoing projects on ASEAN security, economy and socio-culture by Universiti Malaya researchers. CARUM functions much more than an additional university research centre: it acts as the central node in a web of Universiti Malaya institutions/programmes/centres or initiatives. Like ASEAN itself, it would reach out to a range of disciplinary concerns and also geographical areas, helping to give a distinct Universiti Malaya approach, for instance, to work on Northeast Asia, Europe or Africa. It aspires to be a central meeting hub for scholars from Malaysia, the ASEAN region, the wider Asia and the world. CARUM also works closely with government agencies and the business community, and locks in partnerships with existing ASEAN-focused institutes or institutions in Malaysia and the ASEAN region, as well as centres for the study of regionalism elsewhere.

CARUM seeks to strategically build networks and partnerships and advance collaborations with researchers on the topic of ASEAN Regionalism within ASEAN and other regions. We welcome interested scholars, students and anyone interested in ASEAN regionalism to explore what CARUM has to offer.

Dr. Rahul Mishra
Director, CARUM
rahul@um.edu.my