At the Shaping the Future international forum in Kazan, education ministers from BRICS countries convened. Russia's representation included Minister of Education Sergey Kravtsov and Minister of Science and Higher Education Valery Falkov. The event also featured Maxim Zalyvsky, Head of the Project Office of the Russian-African Network University, and Alla Mazina, RAFU Secretary and Deputy Head of the International Education Department, who attended as part of the SPbPU delegation.
The event was attended by the Minister of Education of the UAE Ahmad Al-Falasi; Minister of Education of the Arab Republic of Egypt Ayman Ashour, Vice-Minister of the Ministry of Education of China Chen Jie, Deputy Minister of Technology and Innovation of the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology of the Islamic Republic of Iran Omid Rezaei Far, delegates from India, South Africa and Brazil. Following the meeting, the participants signed the declaration of the 11th BRICS Education Ministers’ Meeting, as well as a protocol on Egypt, Iran and the UAE joining the 2015 BRICS Network University Memorandum of Understanding.
The event underscored the African focus of BRICS development. Egypt and Ethiopia, which joined the organization this year, along with South Africa, are the leading African economies and key partners of the Russian Federation on the continent. These countries are not only strengthening their industrial and economic ties with Russia but also enhancing cultural and educational cooperation. In this context, RAFU's efforts to deepen cooperation and integrate mutual interests with BRICS member African countries are highly significant. During their visit to Kazan, the RAFU delegation conducted several meetings with representatives from African nations, who expressed a strong interest in expanding connections with Russian universities.
