The visit of the delegation led by the rector of the Azerbaijan Technical University (AzTU), Professor Vilayat Valiyev, to Kazakhstan is aimed at strengthening the scientific, technological and human capital components of the strategic cooperation being formed between Azerbaijan and the countries of Central Asia.

“Qafqazinfo” reports that the visit program covered leading technical and research universities located in the cities of Oskemen, Karaganda and Astana, where the scientific, technological and industrial potential of Kazakhstan is concentrated. During the visit, the prospects for large-scale cooperation with industrial enterprises were also discussed.

In this regard, the visit aimed to contribute to the formation of the scientific foundations and a sustainable human capital ecosystem of the four main pillars of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route - the transport-logistics corridor, the green energy corridor, the digital corridor and the knowledge corridor - formed between Azerbaijan and Central Asia.

At the first stage of the visit, the delegation visited the D. Serikbayev East Kazakhstan Technical University, which has formed a university-industrial cluster in the city of Oskemen (Ust-Kamenogorsk) for transport technologies and high-tech metallurgy. During the meetings, the prospects for cooperation in transport engineering and intelligent transport systems were discussed, in particular, the prospects for the joint establishment of the “LUBAN Workshop” model, created by the People’s Republic of China and providing for the application of modern transport technologies, at AzTU.

In addition, the parties considered the possibilities of conducting joint research in the areas of modern metallurgy, new materials, transport technologies and digital engineering. The advanced laboratories of the university and the model of integration with industry aroused great interest among the AzTU delegation.

Karaganda is the central region of Kazakhstan, combining industry, logistics and sustainable development ecosystems in areas such as metallurgy and energy. During the meetings held at the Karaganda National Research University named after Buketov, the Karaganda Technical University named after A. Saginov and the Karaganda Industrial University, issues of cooperation in the fields of metallurgy and new materials, logistics, transport and green energy technologies and sustainable development were discussed.

The parties highly appreciated the opportunities for joint activities in the field of adapting engineering training to modern industrial requirements, developing joint innovation projects with industrial enterprises, developing logistics and transport technologies, developing green economy and energy transition.

During the meetings, they got acquainted with the innovation infrastructure, research laboratories and industrial partnership models of universities and identified specific areas of future cooperation.

Astana is the place where the development of artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and other digital future technologies is taking place, and a university-industrial cluster is being formed in this direction.

At the final stage of the visit, the delegation held meetings at the Eurasian National University named after L.N. Gumilyov, Nazarbayev University and Astana IT University, which are among the most prestigious higher education institutions in Kazakhstan and Central Asia as a whole.

The main topics of the discussions were green energy technologies, artificial intelligence, big data, cybersecurity, cloud technologies, financial technologies, bioengineering, robotics and digital transformation.

In particular, the possibilities of conducting joint research in the fields of artificial intelligence and data analysis, integration of innovation ecosystems, technology transfer and joint participation in international consortium projects were considered.

It should be noted that this visit was a logical continuation of the previous visit of the AzTU delegation to Almaty, which is considered the capital of science, innovation and high technologies of Kazakhstan. Thus, AzTU managed to form a broad cooperation platform covering Almaty, Oskemen, Karaganda and Astana, which are the main scientific, educational and industrial centers of Kazakhstan, in a short period of time.

Within this framework, the parties agreed to deepen cooperation in the development of joint research and innovation projects in the aforementioned priority areas, the establishment of joint inter-university research groups, the mutual exchange of professors and teaching staff, doctoral students, master's students and young researchers, the organization of international scientific conferences, forums and summer schools, as well as the implementation of dual diploma programs and joint dissertation supervision.

This partnership will significantly contribute to strengthening the region's position on the global innovation map by strengthening the mobility of knowledge, technology and human capital between universities, research centers and industrial enterprises of countries located along the Middle Corridor.

It should be noted that the delegation led by the rector of AzTU was represented by the Director of the Institute of Industrial Design and Technologies, Manafaddin Namazov, and the Director of the Institute of Defense Technologies and Cybersecurity, Rahid Alakbarli.