Attracting the best students in Europe while supporting local Higher Education in ACP countries: the Agris Mundus Alliance ambition Didier PILLOT Coordinator Agris Mundus

Coherence & mutual synergy between objectives Attracting the best students from third countries : one of the top Erasmus Mundus objectives Reinforcing Higher Education and training delivered in the third countries themselves is another objective of the EU: Economic Development Fund (10 th EDF in preparation/negotiation with ACP countries) Edulink programme Under which circumstances and which conditions can we avoid contradiction and build synergies?

Erasmus Mundus : not a brain drain instrument Develop all means to make sure that the graduate will get back in her/his home country and will maintain economic ties and strong links with the European “school of thought”. Maintain the professional relations between the EM student and his professional environment in his home country all along the training stay in EU: -have joint R&D activities with third countries institutions, possibly in the countries of the students, -use of action 3 as a mean of cooperation (and not only for EU students out going mobility); Coherence & mutual synergy between objectives

Erasmus Mundus : not a brain drain instrument (2) Develop the link with professionals working in the country throughout the training. -Be concerned with the professional future of the graduate. When possible, negotiate her/his position when back -Develop expertise on EU funded development projects or research programmes See the graduate as a bridge for reinforcing permanent cooperation in her/his home country once she/he is back -Research thesis on a topic close to the professional future of the student -Use alumni as a professional network Coherence & mutual synergy between objectives

Agris Mundus Vision Agris Mundus Alliance : a set of privilege partners Each of them having a regional role Each of them having clear benchmarks identified Each of them being involved in a cooperation project with EU Agris Mundus partners, on the topic of its main benchmarks -Institutional strengthening, -Relations to the professional sector ; -Integration in scientific networks ; -Exchange of trainers and exchange of students (partly supported by the EM) -Developing horizontal exchanges between themselves

Agris Mundus Vision Agris Mundus Alliance : a set of privilege partners Each of them delivering modules that are fully recognised by the whole network and exchangeable between partners. -Similar content, -Delivered in cooperation ; -Same recognition (credits, diploma supplement) ;

Use Action 3 as a mean of cooperation Action 3 Agris Mundus : Agris Mundus Alliance 8 partners. -2 in Latin America -2 in Africa, -3 in Asia -1 in Middle East All of them develop or wish to develop trainings in one of the fields of expertise of the Agris mundus Agris Mundus Vision Reinforcing the capacities of the partners in training and research -Use of EU outgoing mobility of scholars to support local training -Use of EU students outgoing mobility as a mean for joint research : research by pairs.

Use Action 3 as a mean of cooperation The selection of the partners is key (regional level) -Cooperation (N-S or S-S) is only valuable between partners that do have different benchmarks, not clones; -Excellence cannot be achieved in ACP in all sectors for all countries at the same time :Integration at the African level is however necessary; -African initiatives do exist in this respect : NEPAD, Nelson Mandela foundation, African Institute for Science and Technology… -European cooperation strategy should be to reinforce such an integration/ organisation Agris Mundus Vision

Other programmes (EDF, Edulink…): reinforcing the partner Science is not the only issue Organise the cooperation at the regional (African) level (multiplier effect); Use the funding instruments that are also cooperation and networking instruments Concentrate on the same networks of partners Build global projects in which the mobility is ensured by Erasmus mundus. Agris Mundus Vision

Not an ACP limited question Same issue is raised: In Asia : coherence Erasmus Mundus and Asia link In Latin America: coherence Erasmus Mundus and Alcue ( following Alpha, still under preparation ) In the neighbouring countries of the EU on the East or on the South: coherence Erasmus Mundus and Tempus