Hitachi gathers top ASEAN leaders in Bangkok for the 12th HYLI

The 12^th HYLI during July 1-5, 2013, aims to identify and nurture potential Asian leaders and offers them aunique platform to broaden their regional and global outlookswhile promoting Asian values and cross-cultural understanding.

“Hitachi is confident about the success of the 12^th edition of the HYLI,” said  Masahide Tanigaki, representative executive officer, senior vice president and executive officer, Hitachi, Ltd. “Through the years, we’ve seen that HYLI has become a great platform for engaging a diverse set of young leaders. Through open and constructive discussions we will see at the end of the event recommendations from our students regarding some of the difficult challenges facing ASEAN.”

Under the theme “The Road Ahead: ASEAN’s Role in Asia and the Global Economy”, the speakers will touch on various topics under the two sub-themes:

(1) The ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) 2015: What can ASEAN really expect and Asia's significance in the global economy and (2) Connectivity: The driver of ASEAN competitiveness.

“Hitachi is really grateful for the backing and enthusiasm of our invited regional leaders. These demonstrations of support provide inspiration and motivation not only to us, but to our young leaders as well,” said Kiyoaki Iigaya, chief executive for Asia, Hitachi, Ltd. and chairman of Hitachi Asia Ltd.

Since its inauguration in Singapore in 1996, HYLI has been successful in bringing the best and brightest students in Asia together. Each year, four outstanding students below the age of 28 are chosen to represent their country for the programme. These students come from seven ASEAN countries namely Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Japan.

For the 12^th HYLI, a total of almost 222 applications were received from 36 universities in the region. All student applicants were put through a rigorous selection process based on their academic results, participation in extra-curricular activities, awards achieved, fluency in the English language and knowledge of current regional issues.