About Us

The Education Forum for Asia (EFA) (www.asia-edu-org) was organized by Boao Forum for Asia, UNESCO and China Scholarship Council, and was initiated by Fidel V. Romos, former President of the Philippines, Sergey Terechshenko, former Prime Minister of Kazakstan, Lee Soo Sung, former Prime Minister of Korea, Kirti Nidhi Bista, former Prime Minister of Nepal, Jenny Shipley, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, Sheldon Shaeffer, Director of UNESCO’s Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education (Bangkok), and Victor Ng, Chairman of the Macao Foundation. Aimed at “Building Bridges for Asian Education”, the Education Forum for Asia was created with the vision of establishing an international platform of communication and dialogue for governments, businesses and non-governmental organizations to explore and provide sound solutions to the forefront issues facing today’s education.

Since its initiation in 2003, EFA has successfully organized 14annual conferences, including the Meeting of Initiators for the Education Forum for Asia, Ministerial Conference on Education Cooperation in Asia, Education Cooperation Consultation Mechanism Conference and Ministerial Pacific Islands Forum. The forum encompasses sessions of international education, quality-oriented education, art education, distance learning, vocational education, education financing, ecological education, pre-school education and science popularization education etc. The Annual Conferences in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008 were held in Beijing, 2007, 2009, 2011 in Xi’an and 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016，2017 in Chengdu. 

Large number of China's state officials have shown their attendance, including but not limited to:

a. Wang Qishan, Vice Premier of the State Council and Beijing acting mayor at the time;
b. Chen Zhili, Chinese State Councilor; Xu Jialu, former Vice Head of NPC;
c. He Luli, Chairman of the Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang;
d. Zhao Nanqi, former Vice Chairman of CPPCC;
e. Chen Jinyu, Vice Secretary of the State Council;
f.  He Yafei, Vice Minister of Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
g. Zhou Ji, Minister of Ministry of Education;
h. Zhang Xinsheng, Zhou Yuanqing, Lin Bin, Zhang Baoqing; Chen Xiaoya, Wu Qidi, Hao Ping, Liu Limin, all Vice Ministers of Ministry of Education;
i.  Wang Zuoshu, Liu Xincheng, both Members of NPCSC, and Vice Chairmen of the Democratic Progressive Party;
j. Tao Xiping, Gu Mingyuan, both famous educational experts;
k. Long Yongtu, then Secretary General of Boao Forum for Asia.

International state leaders and experts are included but not limited to:
l.  Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, Princess of Thailand;
m. Fidel Ramos, former President of the Philippines;
n. Sergey Terechshenko, former Prime Minister of Kazakhstan;
o. Lee Soo Sung, former Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea;
p. Kirti Nidhi Bista, former Prime Minister of Nepal;
q. Jenny Shipley, former Prime Minister of New Zealand;
r.  Morris Strong, former Vice Secretary of United Nations;
s. José Desmarets, former Vice Premier of Belgium;
t. Grzegorz Kolodko, former Vice Prime Minister of Poland;
u. Nirj Deva, Member of the European Parliament;
v. Derek Vaughan, President of Euro-China Friendship Association, Vice President of the Budget Control Committee of European Parliament;
w. Gerhard Stahl, Secretary-General of European Union Committee of the Regions;
x. Sheldon Shaeffer, Director of UNESCO Bangkok Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education;
y. Victor Ng, Chairman of Macao Foundation;
z. Four Nobel Laureates: Robert A. Mundell, the father of the Euro; famous economists Douglass North and James J. Heckman; and Mohan Munasinghe, Founder Chairman of the Munasinghe Institute for Development.

Beyond this, the EFA has held many symposiums and provided professional consultant service for governments and enterprises. We cooperate with China Youth Daily and the Chinese Universities Media Alliance to hold an annual Photography Contest for Asian Universities. EFA also assists the Youth Affair and Education Bureau of Macau to organize the International Youth Dancing Festival. In response to the call of the Ministry of Education, EFA has launched a scholarship program, which has received widespread response and support from the Macau Foundation, Peking University, Shandong University, Sichuan University, Hainan University, Harbin Institute of Technology, Hunan Normal University, Beijing Foreign Studies University, Beijing Film Academy and Capital Normal University.