Swiss Delegation Visits Morocco To Boost Education, Research Cooperation

Swiss State Secretary For Education, Research, and Innovation (SERI) Martina Hirayama is visiting Morocco from May 30 to June 1 to consolidate bilateral cooperation in the fields of higher education and research.

Rabat – Swiss State Secretary For Education, Research, and Innovation (SERI) Martina Hirayama is visiting Morocco from May 30 to June 1 to consolidate bilateral cooperation in the fields of higher education and research.

The Swiss delegation, which consists of Hirayama and representatives of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland (HES-SO), is set to sign two agreements with Moroccan stakeholders and organize a visit to Moroccan higher-education institutions.

Hirayama is expected to conclude a Memorandum of Understanding with Morocco’s Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation Abdellatif Miraoui. A second cooperation agreement will be signed by the Swiss State Secretariat and the Moroccan Directorate of Scientific Research and Innovation followed by a co-funded call for projects by researchers in both countries.

The Swiss delegation will also visit the Moroccan Foundation for Advanced Science, Innovation and Research and AI Movement, the center of excellence in artificial intelligence.

Additional visits to Mohammed VI Polytechnic University in Ben Guerir and Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakesh will take place “to deepen bilateral relations through direct contacts with local actors and institutions.”

The fruit of recent and regular contact between Rabat and Bern since March 2020, Hirayama’s visit to Morocco aims to strengthen bilateral cooperation in numerous sectors, particularly education and research.

Since 1961, Switzerland has provided more than 70 Moroccan scientists with the Swiss Confederation’s Government Excellence Scholarships, allowing them to pursue their research in Switzerland. Notably, Moroccans constitute the largest African student community in the European country.

In 2020, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne and Mohammed VI Polytechnic University launched the Excellence in Africa initiative to support research programs across Africa.