EDUFUSION NSG Kick-off meeting: building the way for sustainable growth in Kazakhstan

The kick-off meeting of the Erasmus+ CBHE Project "Edu-Fusion Network for Sustainable Growth-EDUFUSION NSG" was held on 15-17th January 2025, at Polytechnic Institute of Porto, Portugal. European partners in attendance included:

• Polytechnic Institute of Porto (Portugal)
• University of Vigo (Spain)
• ENTER-Educators Professional Development (Portugal)

The meeting also welcomed representatives from 6 higher education institutions in Kazakhstan, namely:

• Kazakh National University named after Al-Farabi
• Satbayev University
• Kazakh Agrotechnical University named after Saken Seifullin
• Kazakh National Agrarian Research University
• East Kazakhstan Technical University named after D. Serikbayev
• Karaganda Buketov University

In addition, representatives of the Central Asian Association for Accreditation of Education, and the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan were present, demonstrating the project's national significance and strong stakeholder engagement.

Edu-Fusion Network for Sustainable Growth is an integrated approach designed to transform higher education in Kazakhstan, focusing on aligning educational outcomes with labor market demands and promoting sustainable growth and job creation.

Partner universities from different regions of the country are committed to considering local realities and contributing to the development of the country's industrial and innovative economy. A key objective in this context is the development of high-tech industries to bring the country on par with the world's leading economies.

The kick-off meeting of the project started with a welcome part from the project coordinator João Rocha from Polytechnic Institute of Porto, who also introduced all the participants. José Carlos Quadrado from ENTER presented EDUFUSION overall and specific objectives, milestones, work packages and deliverables. Furthermore, each partner from Kazakhstan delivered a presentation about their universities, with a special focus on engineering education and the practices conducted in this field.  Next, each work package was presented in detail by the respective work package leaders, who outlined the key activities, objectives, and outcomes of their specific tasks within the project.

On the second day, discussions focused on financial management of the project. Additionally, nominations for project committee members were discussed and agreed, along with an outline of the project's next steps, goals, and commitments. In the afternoon, João Rocha and his colleagues organized a guided visit to installations of Polytechnic Institute of Porto.

The final days were reserved for bilateral meetings between the project coordinator and partner representatives, providing an opportunity to address any remaining questions and concerns.

The kick-off meeting was fruitful and marked the official beginning of the project, where all partners expressed strong motivation and commitment towards its successful implementation.