NEW ZEALAND TRADE WITH MALAYA RISING

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28750, 22 November 1958, Page 11

NEW ZEALAND TRADE WITH MALAYA RISING

From reports he had received, the 100 Malayans in Now Zealand studying engineering, medicine, nursing and arts and attending technical training were doing very well, the High Commissioner for the Federation of Malaya in Australia and New Zealand (Dato Gunn Lay Teik) said yesterday. The students had been very well received in New Zealand and were grateful for the kindness and hospitality shown them, he said. Mr Gunn is making his second visit to New Zealand. He is required to make two or three visits a year from his headquarters at- Canberra, and the’ principal matters he is dealing with are student affairs and trade. : Trade was developing between i the two countries and one of his charges was to increase understanding between the two peoples, said Mr Gunn. More Trade "We think we will be able to buy more from you and to sell more to you.” he said. “Everything being equal, we will buy Commonwealth products in preference to those from other countries.” The majority of the Malayan students in New Zealand were here as private students, said Mr Gunn. The great desire in Malaya was for higher education and the nucleus of a second university for the Federation was being formed at Kuala Lumpur, where, with money given by New Zealand under the Colombo Plan, a school of agriculture was being opened. Agricultural science in New Zealand was of a very high standard and Malaya had much to learn from it, said Mr Gunn, who was senior research chemist in the Agriculture Department of Malaya for 29 years. He had visited both the Canterbury and Massey Agricultural Colleges, but official calls had kept him so busy that he had not been able to visit farms so far. “Moro New Zealanders should visit Malaya and more Malayans should come to New Zealand,”

said Mr Gunn. “That is the only way to understand each other. Many New Zealanders know very little of our country and one of the things I am arranging first on returning to my office is to have . films of Malaya made available for showing in New Zealand.’’ Mr Gunn and his wile will be in Christchurch until tomorrow when he will travel by air to Wellington to keep appointments with Cabinet Ministers. They will visit Auckland before returning to Australia.