Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok

HC Deb 24 July 1972 vol 841 cc1312-3

33. Mr. Pavitt

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his estimate of the United Kingdom's contribution to the first three-year phase of the development programme of the Asian Institute of Technology in Bangkok.

Mr. Wood

The British contribution during this period will be just over £1 million.

Mr. Pavitt

How does that compare with the contributions from other countries? What success has the board of trustees had in soliciting further aid from British industry or from charitable institutions?

Mr. Wood

I shall have to make further inquiries about the second part of the hon. Gentleman's question. Dealing with the first part of it, we are roughly on an equal footing with Canada. The AIT hopes that Japan and the United States will play a greater part than that. But we are playing what might be described as an intermediate part between the United States and Japan on the one side and the smaller donors on the other.