Delegations from several African countries visited Novosibirsk State University this summer. Participants included the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Mali Republic to the Russian Federation Seydou Kamissoko, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Chad Republic to the Russian Federation Mahamoud Adam Bechir, and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Ghana Republic to the Russian Federation Aba Nyankoy. The Center for Public Diplomacy initiated the visit as part of an agreement with Rossotrudnichestvo to create a network of Russian Houses in West African countries. NSU was represented at the meeting by Rector Mikhail Fedoruk, Dean of the Mechanics and Mathematics Department Igor Marchuk, Humanities Institute Deputy Director for Academic Affairs Tatyana Belitsa, Director of the Institute of Intelligent Robotics Alexey Okunev, and Head of the International Relations Department Tatyana Zakovryashina.
In the near future, Russian Houses will open in Mali, Chad, and Guinea. This will make a significant contribution to the development of Russian-African cooperation in the field of education. Natalia Krasovskaya, Executive Director of the Center for Public Diplomacy, emphasized,
— Even before the Russian Houses begin operations, we will take an active part in establishing direct contacts between Novosibirsk State University and African universities. We are interested in students coming to the University under the Ministry of Education and Science. We also have extensive plans for internships and joint scientific research. One of our goals is to increase the flow of students to Siberia because the educational and scientific potential of this region is insufficiently represented at the international level. I hope that through joint efforts we will achieve notable results towards this objective.
Following the meeting, the parties agreed to develop direct contacts between African universities and Novosibirsk State University and to increase the number of students studying in various fields.
