After the successful establishment and embedding of the Research and Develop Innovation and Consulting Hubs into the Lao and Thai HEIs’ operations, their set-up was officialised in dedicated Launch Events that took place in the 4 partner HEIs in Lao PDR and Thailand, namely the National University of Laos, Savannakhet University, Prince of Songkla University, and Chiang Mai University. The four Launch Events aimed to inform their audience about the operation of the R&D Hubs in the HEIs, and about potential trends and opportunities for international funding, with a particular focus on expanding connections with the EU. Moreover, the Events provided the perfect opportunity for the official signing of the Hubs’ mandates of operation. Numerous representatives from the educational field, local industries and stakeholders, and international donors attended each of the events in the two countries, further contributing to their visibility and ensuring their continued operation and partnership opportunities. In the National University of Laos (NUOL), the Launch Event was held on April 4th, 2023, and was attended by more than 60 participants. 

In November 2022, the Transnational Capacity Building programme for the managers of the ASTRA R&D Hubs took place. 13 Representatives from the four participating Universities from Laos (NUOL, SKU) and Thailand (PSU, CMU) travelled to Europe to participate in an intensive three-week training designed by the expert European partners (UniFi, Symplexis and AUEB). 7-11 NOVEMBER 2022 , FLORENCE , ITALY The first week of the training took place in Florence, Italy on 7-11 November 2022 hosted by the University of Florence. It focused on transferring the knowledge and expertise on the conduction of Research and Development activities in the field of Social Sciences to the upcoming R&D managers. Strategic and Institutional Management approaches were presented, alongside specific methods on proposal development for pursuing institutional funding opportunities.  The online course developed by AUEB and targeted at staff members to be included in the operation of the ASTRA R&D Hubs was also showcased. All participants highly appreciated the learning process as the results of the evaluation showed. 14-25 NOVEMBER 2022 , ATHENS , GREECE The second round of the transnational training programme took place in Greece, hosted by Symplexis and AUEB. It included two full weeks of  presentations, interactive workshops and exercises as well as study visits to reputable University R&D Centres. 

After one and a half years since the official kick-off of the ASTRA project, the partners had the chance to meet in person for the first time in Vientiane, Laos on the 21st and 22nd of July 2022 for the project’s Management Meeting. Steering Committee representatives from all consortium partners attended the meeting, which was hosted by the coordinator, the National University of Laos.

The first phases of the ASTRA project have been finalized. The consortium, following a common research protocol has undertaken extensive research tasks on identifying the specific needs of the Higher Education environment in Laos and Thailand in terms of governance and funding. The results of the research phase are outlined in detail in thepublication of the D1.2 REPORT NEEDS AND RESOURCE MAPPING ASSESSMENT. Based on the aforementioned results, the expert EU partner Athens University of Economics and Business has developed a detailed Regional Strategy tailored to the needs of South-East Asian Universities. This regional Strategy will be further adapted to four local strategies for each of the participating Asian Universities following a series of discussions, meetings, and fine tuning to meet the specific local needs. Moreover, based on the above results, the consortium under the Guidance of AUEB, will start developing an in-depth training programme targeted at the staff of the Asian Universities who are going to be involved in the set up and operation of the ASTRA R&D Hubs.

The ASTRA project, which is aimed at advancing strategic management, leadership, and fundraising in higher education institutions in Laos and Thailand. The project is funded by the European Commission and involves conducting research on the existing needs and resources in the higher education system in the two partner countries. The research results will be used to develop a training program for the staff of partner institutions. The texts also mention the development of a research protocol by the University of Florence and the areas of focus for the research program, which include analyzing existing HEI governance and funding structures, identifying skills building needs of HEI staff, and identifying existing R&D consulting needs and funding opportunities in the ICT and social science sectors.