Visit of French Ambassador Sylvain Guiaugue to Kozybayev University

Today, Kozybayev University was visited by the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the French Republic to the Republic of Kazakhstan, Sylvain Guiaugue. This is a very important visit for our university, as it will help expand bilateral cooperation. In addition, Kozybayev University can become a platform for strengthening France’s presence in the region.

“North Kazakhstan is an agricultural region. In France, livestock farming, seed production, and related fields are also highly developed. We provide education for students in these areas, just as your university does. The North Kazakhstan region also contains rare earth elements, uranium, and other critical materials. We are ready for cooperation in this area as well. Overall, we are prepared to develop relations with your university,” noted Sylvain Guiaugue.

The Ambassador met with the leadership of Kozybayev University, as well as students and the faculty of the Institute of Language and Literature, where for almost 15 years teachers of the French language have been trained at both bachelor’s and master’s levels.

It is worth noting the trend that in recent years more and more students within the educational program “Foreign Language: Two Foreign Languages” have been choosing French. At present, around 150 such students are studying at our university.

For the past year and a half, we have been establishing ties with the National Institute for Oriental Languages and Civilizations (INALCO), Paris. Last year, scholars from the institute visited us, and in October we organized an autumn school in Russian studies for one of their doctoral students. We continue this active cooperation.

In addition, at the beginning of March, Robin Leterrier, PhD, a doctoral researcher at the French Institute of Geopolitics of Paris VIII University (Saint-Denis, France), taught classes for our students at the university for a week.

We are ready to continue working in this direction and to welcome French specialists to our university.

Chairman of the Executive Board - Rector Yerbol Issakayev emphasized that today’s visit is of special importance, as it is an important step in strengthening cultural, educational, and scientific ties between our countries. He also outlined several areas that already appear promising today:

• training specialists through dual-degree programs in wind energy, IT, and telemedicine;
• joint scientific research with scholars from the University of Arizona, including atomic energy and the study of rare earth metals;
• development of academic mobility: we are ready to host students and faculty from France, creating the most comfortable conditions for them and providing accommodation;
• participation of French students in dual-degree programs, including those jointly implemented with the University of Arizona;
• organization of summer schools in linguistics, agriculture, environmental studies, and other fields;
• launch of joint dual-degree educational programs;
• multicultural interaction.

Following the meeting, specific proposals for cooperation will be developed.

We thank our distinguished guest for the visit and hope for further strategic partnership!