Can former students function as goodwill ambassadors?
By Ad van Schaik
Often Asian students who have studied in the Netherlands return to high positions in their
own countries. "The students of today are the authorities and the managers of tomorrow,"
claims Jongens, who as early as the 1970s was already convinced that the Netherlands
made too little use of these former students. On the strength of his conviction, between
1970 and 1980 he set up alumni associations in nine Asian countries (Bangladesh, the
Philippines, India, Indonesia, Korea, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Pakistan), in
his capacity as head of the department of International Education of Nuffic, the Nether-
lands Organization for International Cooperation in Higher Education.
The number of former students who have achieved great prominence is impressive. In
India one former student became minster for Education, in Indonesia minister for
Finance, in Korea minister for Agriculture, in Nepal minster for Irrigation, in Sri Lanka
director of Harbour Works, and in Thailand secretary of state for Finance. All of these
are posts in which they would have been able to generate a great deal of goodwill for the
Netherlands. Since the retirement of Jongens in 1990, the associations have slipped into a
fairly dormant state, with the exception of Sri Lanka where the Dutch Alumni Association
celebrated its Silver Jubilee this spring.
Idiosyncratic Policy
In comparison to many other countries, the number of foreign students who study at
Dutch universities is fairly low. In the 1980s the number of foreign students was only 0.4
%, whereas in Germany this was 2%, in England 4%, and in France as high as 8 per
cent of the student population. In the eyes of Asian students the Netherlands is a second
choice. They prefer the United States, England, or Germany. The Dutch language is not
the only hurdle they have to face, in other countries they can study at a university where
they can gain a prestigious degree like an MSc in science or a PhD. Most of them who
study in the Netherlands follow only a diploma course at one of the international
institutes.
When it comes to offering possibilities for foreigners to study, the Netherlands pursues its
own idiosyncratic policy. Top priority is given to the fact that students from developing
countries who study there must be prevented from settling in the country after they have
completed their studies. This is the reason that, instead of offering complete university
courses, the Netherlands tends to arrange short, post-doctoral courses ranging from six to
twelve months, in which English is the main language of instruction. The Dutch Ministry
of Development Cooperation provides a large number of scholarships for candidates who
have had at least three years practical experience after completing their university studies.
Their employers are also obliged to guarantee that the scholarship holders will be re-
employed after they have completed their study abroad. Experience has shown that this
sort of precautionary measure does indeed help to prevent any brain drain. This also plays
an important role in Germany, England, and France. This year alone in the Netherlands
300 courses are being organized in which 4000 foreigners will participate.
Cultural and Economic Ties
One famous institute which welcomes foreigners is the IHE (Institute of Hydraulic and
Environmental Engineering) in Delft, which works in close collaboration with the
Technical University Delft (TUD) in the same city. An important part of this Delft
training is a weekly visit to a business. One week this may be a dredging concern,
another a business which specializes in environmental techniques or land
reclamation.
Students from Asian countries are often civil servants. In many Asian countries the
government is playing a key role in industrialization; this despite the fact that privatizati-
on is slowly gaining ground in Asia. When students later achieve a high position a good
relationship with the Netherlands can mean orders. After all, the students have been given
the opportunity to make the acquaintance of the Dutch business community.
It is very useful to have directories, address lists of alumni, which indicate where they are
working. Should the Netherlands wish to support or to instigate a project, it is possible to
consult the list to see if there is an expert in that country who has studied in the Nether-
lands.
The oldest international institute in the Netherlands is the ITC in Enschede, the Internatio-
nal Institute for Aerospace Survey and Earth Sciences. It was the brainchild of the first
post-war prime minister Prof. Schemerhorn who was himself a surveyor. One excellent
initiative undertaken by the ITC is the ITC Newsletter, which is filled to the brim with up
to date professional information, allowing former students to keep abreast of recent
developments in their field. Taking a subscription to foreign professional literature is
often much too expensive for people from developing countries. In order for them to keep
in touch with developments in the Netherlands in the general sense, those alumni who are
interested should qualify for regular receipt of an English language journal like
Holland Horizon. This is what keeps the ties with Holland alive. And this is
what promotes cultural contacts with the country where they once studied. Jongens says:
"The Netherlands is a small country. In Asia it maintains a cultural attaché only
in Japan and Indonesia." Former students could function very well as good-will ambassa-
dors for the Netherlands. This is why it is vitally important that students return home
with good memories of the country. In this context suitable accommodation is of
exceptional importance. Through such programmes as 'Meet the Netherlands' and 'Meet
the Dutch' students are brought into touch with Dutch society.
In the long run, cultural ties can also prove to be important economically, because as
Jongens says: "The two are very closely connected." When doing business in Asian
countries, a long-standing personal relationship is extraordinarily important."
Sri Lanka
Jongens' shining example is Sri Lanka where the alumni association has 350 members and
has just celebrated its Silver Jubilee. Although the associations in most Asian countries
lead a fairly dormant existence, that in Sri Lanka is bursting with activity. The energetic
president of the Association, the recently deceased Engineer Sarath de Fonseka, studied in
Delft and later would become director of the Port of Colombo, which he extended and
updated to become the most modern in South Asia. Contending with a highly attractive
offer of financing from Japan, the Netherlands had no role in this, but had it offered
competitive prices it would have been in the running to provide the harbour facilities.
The cultural element is important in Sri Lanka because of the time that the country fell
under the sway of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) (1656-1796). It still abounds
with a great many reminders of this period in the form of forts, buildings, and canals.
This explains why the Dutch Alumni Association set its shoulder to the wheel for the
restoration of the Dutch orphanage which dates from 1780, in which an interesting
museum of the Dutch period is now housed. The work was carried out under the
supervision of the Sri Lankan architect Ashley de Vos. The Dutch Alumni Association is
also very closely involved in the twinning between the towns of Velsen and Galle, which
is characterized by a plethora of small-scale development projects. These include a sewing
school for unemployed girls, 48 houses to replace those demolished in a slum clearance,
books for the library, the building of two community centres, support for two old peop-
les' homes, and the repair of the sewerage system which dates from the VOC period, all
of which give this twinning meaning.
Revitalization
The associations of former students are dormant at the moment. Minister Pronk of
Development Cooperation wants to pump new life into them. Countries such as England,
Germany, and France, not to mention Japan, have long since grasped the value of this
sort of after-care. Mr. Jongens is the first to admit that it is difficult to estimate the
effects of all these associations. Despite this he is utterly convinced that relations with
former students will eventually prove productive. It is not for nothing that other countries
invest large sums in this. An article in the influential weekly The Economist
mentions that by the year 2000 roughly some 100,000 students will have studied in Japan.
Japan sees contacts with former students as an extension of its commercial empire.
Japanese interest goes so deep that former students who promote Japan once they have
returned to their own countries are surprised the day after such a promotion by finding a
large floral tribute on their desks. Another leading example is Germany where just the
Carl Duesberg Institute alone has a budget of 3.6 million Deutsch Marks available for
1996. So far, Jongens is convinced, the Netherlands has been particularly parsimonious.
This reminds him of an English saying: "The fault of the Dutch is giving too little and
asking too much."
Translated by Rosemary Robson-McKillop