The German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Kazakhstan Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov participated in the ceremony of putting the time capsule in the construction of the Kazakhstan-German Institute of Sustainable Engineering in Aktau, El.kz cites primeminister.kz.
The new educational institution was created in execution of the assignment of the Head of the State Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to open branches of leading foreign universities in the republic and to form a new generation of industrial engineers. It works on the basis of Caspian University of Technology and Engineering named after Yessenov.
A number of large energy projects are currently being implemented in the Mangistau region, one of which is a plant for the production of green hydrogen. In this regard, the new Kazakh-German Institute will train in-demand technical specialists from local youth and residents of other regions of the country based on best practices in the field of engineering.
The training of the first undergraduate students will begin in September of this year. It will be them who in 2029 will open the time capsule, in which today Alikhan Smailov and Frank-Walter Steinmeier have laid a letter with an address to the first graduates of the new university.
Between 2023 and 2024, the training will take place in two undergraduate programs: "Energy and Environmental Engineering" at Hamburg Technical University and "Logistics" at the Technical University of Wildau. The comprehensive curriculum includes three years of study at the Yesenov University and a year and a half of study at a partner university in Germany. In this regard, a lot of attention in the new university will be paid to the study of the German language.
In the future, the educational program will be expanded to 8 bachelor's and 6 master's programs in such fields as industrial automation and robotics, water and waste management, renewable energy development, technological engineering, Internet of Things, data science and artificial intelligence. Kazakhstani engineering students will study at leading universities in Germany, including the Technical University of Wildau, Hamburg Technical University, Anhalt University of Applied Sciences, Technical University of Berlin, Darmstadt Technical University and others.
In his speech, German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier noted that the training of highly qualified engineers is beneficial to both Kazakhstan and German companies.
"Both countries need good specialists. I am sure that the future of this institute and its graduates will be bright. This is a very important project in the field of education. Cooperation between our countries in this field and in research will continue to grow. I wish you a successful start in September this year," Frank-Walter Steinmeier said.
For his part Prime Minister of Kazakhstan noted that Kazakhstan and Germany have been linked for many years with a mutually beneficial strategic partnership an important part of which is the sphere of higher education and science. So, at present time between high schools of two countries concluded 178 agreements, realized more than 10 double-diploma programs. In this regard, the establishment of the Kazakhstan-German Institute of Sustainable Engineering is also very relevant.
"The institute will contribute to the training of in-demand personnel, as well as research and development of new technologies, including in the production of green hydrogen," Alikhan Smailov said.
He added that the development of green economy is one of the key trends in today's world, which aims to preserve natural resources and ensure sustainable development. In particular, experts predict that in the coming years, the world demand for hydrogen will significantly increase in many industries, including metal processing, chemical production and transport.
"We are not lagging behind global trends and are also striving to introduce clean technologies at home. Green economy in Mangystau region will reduce the dependence of the region on the oil and gas industry, lead to the creation of new jobs and improve the quality of life of the population. I am sure that the Institute will contribute to this and become one of the leading universities not only in the west of the country, but also in Central Asia," Alikhan Smailov said.
The event was also attended by Minister of Science and Higher Education of Kazakhstan Sayasat Nurbek, Akim of Mangystau region Nurlan Nogayev, President of Kazakhstan-German University Volrad Rommel, President of Yesenov University Berik Akhmetov.