(Special for CAFS) Zambia, Algeria sign MoU to deepen cooperation in education sector

LUSAKA, April 29 -- Zambia and Algeria have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to deepen cooperation in the education sector, a statement released on Sunday said.
   The MoU will see the Zambian Ministry of Education cooperate with the Algerian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research in the areas of higher education, research and innovation, according to the statement.
   It added that the MoU will strengthen Zambia's cooperation with Algeria in the administration of scholarships that the Algerian government has been offering to Zambia since 2006, and will allow the two countries to further engage in exploring the possibility of including postgraduate scholarships.
   Zambian Minister of Education Douglas Syakalima said he expects that through exchanges with Algerian universities, Zambian universities will begin to develop their research outputs into patentable products with commercial value.
   He noted Algeria's strength in the establishment of business incubators or start-up centers at universities, which support the transformation of research results into start-up enterprises.
   He hoped that the collaboration to be facilitated by the MoU will lead to the establishment of innovation hubs at Zambian universities that will provide full end-to-end support to students and researchers who have innovative ideas that not only have commercial value, but also provide solutions to some of Africa's challenges.
   Algerian Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Kamel Bidari said the purpose of the MoU is to establish an effective partnership through the development of university training programs and the exchange of knowledge between students and faculty.