Professor John Dewar, Vice-Chancellor of La Trobe University (Australia), officially visited Kyushu University on September 6th, 2019. On this occasion, Professor Dewar visited IMI to exchange various opinions on the research and student exchange, including the Australia Branch of IMI. Then Professor Dewar visited Professor Kubo, President of Kyushu University to sign the agreement to extend the IMI Australia Branch until the end of 2021.

IMI established the Australia Branch in La Trobe University in March 2015. It has been managed under the great support of La Trobe University and it has played a core role in the Asia Pacific Consortium of Mathematics for Industry (APCMfI). The contract of the IMI Australia Branch was supposed to terminate in January 2020, but it has been extended for approximately two years so that both universities will investigate the possibility of more stable and long-term management of the Australia Branch.