UN praises UQ as a centre of excellence

The University's Institute of Continuing & TESOL Education (ICTE) has been recognised as a centre of excellence, recently commissioned to undertake a United Nations-sponsored training project.

ICTE director Christine Bundesen said the Centre had been chosen to provide an English language course for three prominent lawyers from Vietnam, also incorporating a legal English component.

She said it was the Centre's first project with the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS).

'Hopefully it will be the first of many,' Ms Bundesen said. 'It was an extremely successful project - all the feedback has been positive, particularly with regard to the relevance of the program to the training needs of the participants.

'ICTE is pleased to have also received congratulations from UNOPS on our professionalism and competence in the delivery of the program.'

During a 12-week period between June and September, the three Vietnamese Fellows undertook a program of intensive English language, combined with lectures and visits to give them an overview of Australia's legal system - the criminal justice system, constitutional law and civil procedure.

Sponsored by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), the Fellows were: Dr Dang Quang Phuong, Supreme People's Court Judge; Mr Ngo Cuong, head of the Criminal and Administrative Law Research Department at the Supreme People's Court of Vietnam; and Dr Khuat Van Nga, senior procurator at the Supreme People's Procuratorate of Vietnam.

For more information, contact Ms Christine Bundesen (telephone 3365 6565).