a student from Laos may wish to study at a top ranked university in Singapore, although the cost may be prohibitive. The positive effect lies in the fact that after integration, all education centres may be judged from a common baseline; the hope is that this will give schools in countries where education is substandard more impetus to improve to at least meet a regional average. There is also the possibility that a liberalised South-east Asia will be capable of attracting a greater number of high-calibre students from Europe and America.