Students of the Public Administration Study Program at Hasanuddin University (UNHAS) gained comparative insights into rural poverty reduction policies in ASEAN through a sharing session held on Thursday, 3 September 2026. The session, part of the Comparative Public Administration course, featured Mohammad Zaki Bin Che Aat, a doctoral researcher from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) and a rural development practitioner with RISDA Malaysia.
Drawing on field research conducted in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, Zaki shared comparative findings on rural poverty reduction policies and introduced the ASEAN Hybrid Capability Model (AHCM), which integrates institutional protection, grassroots participation, and local resilience. The course is taught by Andi Ahmad Yani, S.Sos., M.Si., MPA., M.Sc. and Nuralamsyah Ismail, S.Sos., M.A., with support from the Policy and Governance Laboratory (POLiGov) coordinated by Sri Nurindah Sari Arsyad.
The session also welcomed 10 USM students who joined the class at UNHAS, adding a cross-country perspective to the discussion and strengthening academic interaction between students from both universities. Discussions covered challenges in local policy implementation, the role of cultural values in community empowerment, and the relevance of the AHCM to poverty reduction initiatives in Indonesia. Students also explored how comparative public administration can help them better understand the design and implementation of public policies across different national contexts. The sharing session provided students with an opportunity to engage directly with regional research while developing a broader understanding of poverty policy in ASEAN. It also opened further opportunities for academic exchange and collaboration between UNHAS and Universiti Sains Malaysia.