The gathering brought together 11 partner testing centres of the British Council IELTS from all over Indonesia to celebrate their collective achievements and shared vision
JAKARTA, 8 SEPTEMBER 2023 – The British Council in Indonesia successfully hosted its IELTS Partner Gathering at the Gran Mahakam Hotel Jakarta, that served as an annual platform to recognize and appreciate the invaluable support and significant contributions made by British Council Indonesia’s esteemed IELTS partners. The gathering provided an opportunity to commemorate the accomplishments and milestones achieved over the past year, reflecting the collective resilience and adaptability of all participants. Thismarked a triumphant return to in-person gatherings after two years of virtual engagement due to the global pandemic.
British Council Indonesia seized the occasion to spotlight its expansion endeavors over the past year. Through collaboration with partners, they have established partnerships with 10 IELTS on Computer testing points located beyond Jakarta, along with 2 venue partners within Jakarta, resulting in a collective network of 51 registration centers. These strategic partnerships have played a pivotal role in contributing to 25% of the total IELTS volume by April 2023. The event saw representatives from partner institutions, including UPT Bahasa UNIMED (Medan), UPT Bahasa UNP (Padang), LBI FIB Universitas Indonesia (Depok), IPB Language Academy (Bogor), BETA Bridging Borders (Bandung), SEU Universitas Diponegoro (Semarang), SMA Pradita Dirgantara (Solo), CILACS UII (Yogyakarta), LIA (Surabaya), Golden Gate Makassar (Makassar), and Golden Gate Manado (Manado), coming together to celebrate their collective achievements and shared vision. The British Charges d’Affaires for Indonesia and Timor-Leste, Matthew Downing, also attended the event.
The event commenced with a warm and engaging welcome address delivered by Summer Xia, the Country Director of British Council Indonesia and South East Asia Cluster Lead. It set the stage for a series of enlightening and interactive sessions that followed.
During his speech, Summer Xia spoke about how the British Council has operated for 75 years in Indonesia and stayed true to its mission right from the start, which includes building connections by delivering English examination services to Indonesians.
He continued, “Our work in English language assessment together with our partners is the enabler for Indonesians to pursue their dreams, be it studying abroad, getting a better job, or interacting more effectively with the rest of the world. Given the size of Indonesia, we rely on our partners to help us reach every corner of this country where we don’t have a physical presence so we can provide better access for our customers. The purpose of tonight’s gathering is not only for partners to connect with us, but also to network amongst each other, to explore solutions to common challenges as well as identify future collaboration opportunities. We also want to work with our partners to strengthen our joint marketing effort to promote IELTS more widely.”
Participants had the opportunity to delve into various informative sessions, including a thought-provoking discussion on education titled "Influencing Your Students to Pursue Overseas Studies." Furthermore, there was a comprehensive exploration of exam practices within Southeast Asia, providing valuable insights into the region's examination landscape.
Adding to the wealth of knowledge shared during the event, representatives from Balai Bahasa Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia and Golden Gate Education delivered insightful sessions, further enriching the collective learning experience.
Dr. Rd. Safrina, MA of Balai Bahasa UPI Bandung said that “Being partner of the British Council really uplift our status and it is prestigious. So we were very happy with being chosen as British Council partner. I think it is very important for British Council to open up to more institutions and provide them with more possibilities of collaborations. Not only in testing but also in training and other fields.”
The pinnacle of the evening was reached with the eagerly anticipated announcement of the new IELTS partner status for the financial year 2022-2023, bringing an exciting conclusion to an event filled with valuable discussions and collaborative spirit.
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Annisa Fauzia
ENDS
About the British Council
The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. We support peace and prosperity by building connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and countries worldwide. We do this through our work in arts and culture, education and the English language. We work with people in over 200 countries and territories and are on the ground in more than 100 countries. In 2021–22 we reached 650 million people.