SPbPU summarized the results of RAFU activities in 2024

In mid-February, a general meeting of the Russian-African Network University (RAFU) consortium members was held in an online format to summarize the results of RAFU activities for 2024 and agree on the work plan for 2025. It was attended by Stepan Sokolov, deputy director of the Department of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia, Dmitry Arseniev, vice-rector for international affairs of SPbPU, Maxim Zalyvsky, head of the RAFU Project Office, Alla Mazina, secretary of the RAFU Presidium, Deputy Directorate of International Cooperation, Issa Togo, honorary consul of Mali in St. Petersburg, associate professor of the Higher School of Hydraulic and Power Engineering, and more than 70 representatives of 40 Russian universities-participants of RAFU.

Stepan Sokolov in his welcoming speech noted that Russian-African relations have a long history, where cooperation in science and higher education has always occupied a significant place and often became an important link between our countries and peoples. Hundreds of thousands of African students have received quality higher education in Russia.

The development of cooperation of the RAFU consortium with the African Union and African universities, first of all, in terms of training African teachers, also seems to be a promising direction.

SPbPU’s activities within the RAFU consortium have become an important vector of development that corresponds to Russia’s geopolitical interests. In a year and a half, we have brought new dynamics to cooperation with African countries, expanded the geography of the consortium, and made the RAFU brand recognizable in the international arena. We not only restored the domain and updated the content of the website, but also turned it into an educational portal, placing more than 120 online courses for African colleagues, said Dmitry Arseniev.

This work has already brought significant results: the number of participants has doubled, and the geography of cooperation has covered 15 African countries. RAFU takes part in major international forums. Only this year, RAFU members took part in such events as the World Youth Festival and Young Scientists Congress in Sochi, St. Petersburg Economic Forum, BRICS Education Ministers Meeting in Moscow, Russia-Africa Partnership Forum and many others.

The participants of the general meeting highly appreciated the work of the consortium «Russian-African Network University» and Polytechnic University as a coordinator of the consortium.

In 2025 RAFU will continue its work on the development of Russian-African cooperation and expansion of the geography of the consortium’s activities on the African continent.