Georgian Education Minister, UK officials discuss prospects of deepening cooperation

Georgian Education Minister Giorgi Amilakhvari on Tuesday met Susan Acland-Hood, the Permanent Secretary of the Department of Education of the United Kingdom, and Sir Steve Smith, the Adviser to the UK Government on Higher Education, to discuss ties in the field between the countries.

The Georgian Ministry said the meeting with Acland-Hood, held on the sidelines of the Education World Forum, hosted in London, discussed results of an in-depth study on transnational education, carried out in Georgia between January and March by the British magazine Times Higher Education.

The purpose of the research was to identify opportunities and challenges for development of British and Georgian transnational education and develop recommendations for the partnership between the two countries.

The Ministry noted the study, conducted within the cooperation between the body and the British Council, had established a “great readiness and opportunity” for British universities to start operating in Georgia.

The meeting with Smith reviewed prospects of deepening cooperation between Georgian and British universities.

Amilakhvari also discussed a study visit of British universities in Georgia for better understanding the country's opportunities and establishing “real cooperation” between higher educational institutions of two countries, with the British side expressing their “readiness” for close partnership with Georgia.