The New Zealand Government established three Centres of Asia-Pacific Excellence (North Asia, Southeast Asia and Latin America) in July 2017 to enhance New Zealand’s engagement with these regions.
The North Asia Centre of Asia-Pacific Excellence (North Asia CAPE) is committed to helping New Zealand build sustainable, future-focused commercial, educational, and cultural relationships with Greater China (including Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan), Japan, and Korea.
North Asia CAPE has two priority areas: upskilling New Zealand businesses seeking to internationalise in China, Japan, and Korea; and supporting students’ learning of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean language and culture, hence equipping them to succeed in North Asia.
North Asia CAPE is currently consulting its stakeholders in the business and education sectors to better meet changing needs in the midst and aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. New initiatives include our ‘North Asia Post-Covid’ series of online webinars and interactive workshops, and the ongoing digitisation of existing programmes to meet practical and health requirements.
Our programme of work has to-date included:
The Centres of Asia-Pacific Excellence (CAPEs) are supported by a consortium of four leading New Zealand universities: University of Auckland, Victoria University of Wellington, Otago University, and University of Waikato. Working in affiliation with these institutions, CAPEs harness evidence-based research, stakeholder experience, academic expertise, and industry acumen to help ensure best practice with their regions of interest.
North Asia CAPE welcomes a plurality of perspectives to facilitate important conversations about New Zealand’s role and future in the region.