St Petersburg University strengthens cooperation with universities in South Africa
A delegation from the Republic of South Africa has visited St Petersburg University. The delegation was led by Fulufhelo Godfrey Netswera, Head of BRICS Research Institute, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Management Sciences at the Durban University of Technology. During the meeting, the parties signed an agreement on cooperation between universities.
Sergey Andryushin, Vice-Rector for International Affairs at St Petersburg University, welcomed the guests and said that we should promote successful cooperation between the oldest Russian university and the Republic of South Africa, since there was a potential for expanding the scope of cooperation. St Petersburg University covers various fields of knowledge: from the humanities and technology to the natural sciences. The University offers more than 500 degree programmes and more than 800 non-degree programmes.
'Your country is one of the leaders in global development and has achieved significant progress in education, science and culture. We are interested in continuing and strengthening our cooperation: joint projects, joint meetings, conferences and round tables,' said Sergey Andryushin. He also expressed confidence that the agreement with the Durban University of Technology would benefit both countries and underpin the development of joint scientific and educational projects.
Among the key issues discussed during the meeting was an issue relating to the need for active development of academic exchange and the creation of joint double-degree master’s programmes in the field of digital economy, law, and management to name just a few.
The representative of the foreign delegation, Mr Fulufhelo Godfrey Netswera, agreed with the proposal of the Vice-Rector of St Petersburg University to develop joint double-degree programmes and promised to provide assistance in the implementation of the plans. St Petersburg University and the Durban University of Technology have much in common, especially in areas such as innovation, technology, economics and artificial intelligence research, he added. ‘We are happy to hear about joint double-degree programmes. It is a privilege for us to cooperate with St Petersburg University, a university with strong traditions and a long history of achievements,’ said Fulufhelo Godfrey Netswera.
As the Head of BRICS Research Institute, he also proposed developing cooperation with the countries of the interstate association and involving leading universities in Russia and Africa in this cooperation. In response to this initiative, the Vice-Rector for International Affairs said that St Petersburg University is effectively implementing partnerships with Chinese and Indian organisations and also works in the new format of cooperation "Russia — India — China". St Petersburg University is open to proposals and projects that strengthen ties with foreign universities to expand international cooperation, he said.
We communicate closely with each other. We have a lot of joint publications, a lot of projects, so we have a ready environment to go deeper and reach the next level of coordination of partnerships.
Sergei Smirnov, Associate Professor in the Department of Economics of Enterprise, Entrepreneurship and Innovation at St Petersburg University
The opportunities for cooperation provide impetus to the development of new international research projects and promotes understanding of global problems and challenges that need to be overcome through joint efforts, Sergei Smirnov added.
During the meeting, they also discussed opportunities to develop online courses. The University ranks first in the number of courses on the national Open Education platform, said Sergey Andryushin, Vice-Rector for International Affairs at St Petersburg University. The University has entered international online education platforms as the Indonesia Cyber Education Institute (ICE Institute) and the China’s XuetangX.
The culmination of the visit was the signing of a cooperation agreement between the St Petersburg and the Durban University of Technology, consolidating plans to organise student and staff exchanges and to develop joint educational and research projects. 'We must join our efforts, expand the range of programmes, and find new areas for cooperation that meet modern labour market conditions. Only by working together can we cope with the challenges facing the international community,' summed up Sergey Andryushin.