EAEU countries’ leading universities agreed to establish Eurasian Network University

The Network University is formed as part of implementing new directions for developing the Eurasian integration, enshrined in the Strategy-2025, to create a barrier-free environment in education in a phased manner.

According to the Memorandum, the ENU activities are aimed at developing the EAEU human and knowledge based capital, promoting global competitiveness and long-term prosperity of the EAEU countries’ economies as well as creating conditions to improve living standards of citizens. The ENU objectives include organizing the skill formation in a network form (including by means of distance learning technologies) to meet the needs of the EAEU labor market; monitoring the EAEU labor market development; organizing globally competitive research and development activities; promoting free movement of educational services within the EAEU; and enhancing the personal growth of young people in the spirit of the Eurasian integration values.

As Sergei Glazyev, Minister in charge of Integration and Macroeconomics of the Eurasian Economic Commission and Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, stated at the thematic session "Developing network forms of interaction in implementing higher education programs", the Commission worked on eliminating barriers in the common economic space, including the labor market.

"We managed to achieve the removal of barriers concerning recognition of higher education diplomas; an agreement was prepared on the direct recognition of documents on scientific and academic degrees. One of the challenges we face is to converge our education programs in those specialties being in demand in the common economic space", Sergei Glazyev said.

Presenting his project of the Network University model, Viktor Sadovnichy, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, stressed that it "can become an efficient tool for forming the EAEU common labor market as well as moderator of interaction between the Eurasian Economic Commission and representatives of the academic and business communities".

"The University’s mission can be developing and monitoring personnel training standards, promoting the integration of educational systems as well as supporting promising research and innovation projects", Viktor Sadovnichy stated.

Speaking of the Eurasian Network University project, Almaz Kadyraliev, Rector of the M. Ryskulbekov Kyrgyz Economic University, has stressed that its idea is similar to the international model of the network university, but the Eurasian project will give priority to digital formats. Besides, the Rector has noted that the KEU already applies the digital learning basis, and in this regard, the possibility of active exchange of accumulated experience between universities participating in this project increases to ensure a more complete implementation of education programs in the ENU.

Furthermore, the discussion attendees discussed forming interuniversity consortia within the EAEU, developing distance learning in implementing professional education programs in the Union States, joint development of online education programs and the possibility of interstate distance vocational training, professional training and advanced training of employees. The session attendees focused on the prospects for forming the Eurasian common educational space as well.

The Eurasian Competence Center of the M. Ryskulbekov Kyrgyz Economic University will become the depository of the Eurasian Network University.