On Equal Terms: New Partners in International Education
Eighth Annual Conference, 5 to 7 December, 1996
Budapest, Hungary

Budapest, the romantic Hungarian capital situated on the banks of the Danube, was an elegant host for the 8th Annual EAIE Conference. More than 1450 participants from more than 60 countries (literally from Albania to Zimbabwe) made this the largest and most diverse conference ever.

The opening plenary was held in the Budapest Convention Centre. The rector of the Budapest University of Economic Sciences, Prof Rudolf Andorka, formally opened the conference, and the Hungarian Minister of Culture and Education, Balint Magyar, gave an interesting account of current developments in Hungarian higher education.

After the opening sessions and professional sections meetings on 5 December Ms Lesley Wilson, director of UNESCO's European Centre for Higher Education (CEPES) in Bucuresti, Romania, gave the keynote speech at the Opening Plenary. She examined the theme 'On equal terms: new partners in international education' carefully outlining her vision of cooperation on equal terms and the pre-conditions for successful partnerships. She discussed the different types of partnerships, the strategic decisions behind choosing them, and importance of choosing them correctly. After her interesting speech the participants were invited for the Opening Reception at the Budapest Convention Centre for a selection of Hungarian wines and dishes followed by a classical music performance.

As always there were a lot of interesting workshops and sessions in the field of the theme mentioned above. The presence of European Commission resource persons made it possible for many lingering questions to be answered and feedback to be given directly.

The ever-popular EAIE Dance was held at the University of Horticulture and Food. Very special was the opening dance, a traditional Hungarian folk dance that was used to open balls of the nobility until the end of the last century. The evening continued with a repertoire that ranged from rock 'n roll to tango, from folk music to disco. The music suited all tastes!