Two new scholarships and educational exchange programmes were announced, on Friday, pursuant to an agreement on Science and Technology Cooperation between Tunisia and the United States.
The renewable ten-year agreement was signed by Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Information and Communication Technology Tawfik Jelassi and US Ambassador to Tunisia Jacob Walles.
The first programme is the new 4.75 million dollar Fullbright Tunisia Tech+Scholars Programme that will send approximately 40 Tunisian graduate students to the US to obtain master's degrees in science, technology and business fields.
The second will make available 800,000 dollars to establish three new linkages between US and Tunisian educational institutions in the fields of technological innovation and business development.
"The ê5.5 million in funding for the two new educational programmes has been approved by the Department of State and both programmes will be officially launched following final approval from the US Congress," the US Embassy in Tunis said in a press release.
The signing of this agreement and the announcement of these two new programmes represent the joint commitment to promote close cooperation between the two countries in science and technology and to foster future research and economic innovation.
The agreement provides a mechanism for critical research and development efforts that facilitate the exchange of scientific data and results and protect intellectual property rights.
Expanded cooperation in science and technology will allow to forge relationships between universities, researchers, business leaders and citizens, Walles indicated.
Jelassi said that this agreement will cover such scientific fields as environment protection, biodiversity, resources management, marine science, meteorology, agriculture, energy, astronomy, health, ICT and engineering for sustainable development.
This agreement is the direct result of the Tunisia-US Strategic Dialogue, held on the sidelines of PM Jomaa's visit to the USA last April.
A number of initiatives followed the Strategic dialogue, including a ê500 million loan guarantee and the expansion of the 20 million dollar Thomas Jefferson Undergraduate Scholars Programme.
© Tunis-Afrique Presse 2014
