Ambassadors of African countries toured KFU
They were welcomed on 28 March.
Among the ambassadors were:
Luciano Nkogo Ndong Ayekaba (Equatorial Guinea);
Augusto da Silva Cunha (Angola);
and Joseph Nkurunziza (Burundi).
They were joined by Head of the Student Office of the Embassy of Angola to Russia Manuel Domingues de Oliveira Cadete, President of Investment Russia Organization Stanislav Aranovich, and Vice-President of IRO Timur Eremeev.
KFU was represented by Director of the International Office Olga Vershinina, Deputy Director of the Institute of International Relations Albina Imamutdinova, Chair of the Department of Regional Studies and Digital Humanities Luiza Karimova, Chair of the Department of Arabic Studies, Islamic Studies and Afro-Asiatic Studies Nailya Mingazova, and others.
After touring the History Museum, the guests listened to Ms Vershinina’s presentation of the University.
In his response, Ambassador Ayekaba noted, “It is said in all languages that you don’t have to give a person a fish, you have to teach them how to catch it, so we in Africa want you to teach us how to fish. We are very interested in learning.”
He expressed hope that Russian universities will develop cooperation with African colleagues in continuation of the Soviet tradition.
“We can say that 60 percent of African leaders and specialists studied here in Russia, and thanks to the education they received from the Soviet Union, there is a Constitution of Guinea and close relations with Russia. When faced with a choice in international organizations, such as the UN, 90 percent of African countries support the Russian Federation,” emphasized the diplomat.
After that, the delegates met with their compatriots studying at KFU, and listened to their accounts of life in Kazan.
The ambassadors then proceeded to the Tatarstan Chamber of Commerce, where negotiations with KFU representatives continued. The guests found out that KFU has its in-house Center for BRICS Studies and that the University is a co-organizer of the African House in Kazan.
At this moment, KFU hosts six Angolan nationals, seven Burundians, and two Equatoguineans. In March 2024, the University was visited by participants of the World Youth Festival, among whom were Angolan delegates.