Bhubaneswar, August 7: The 13th BRICS Education Ministers’ meeting is taking place in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, from August 5 to 13. During the meeting on Friday, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced that all member countries unanimously adopted the “BRICS Education Ministers’ Declaration.”
This declaration marks a significant step towards strengthening cooperation among member nations in the field of education.
Speaking to the media, Pradhan noted that education ministers, representatives, and senior officials from Brazil, Russia, China, South Africa, Indonesia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Ethiopia participated in the summit. The event commenced on August 5 with the third BRICS Senior Officials’ meeting on education in Bhubaneswar.
The Union Minister highlighted that this year’s conference, held under India’s third BRICS presidency, focused on “Building Resilience and Innovation for Cooperation and Sustainable Development.” Special emphasis was placed on youth participation and fostering connections among people.
Pradhan stated, “Representatives shared their thoughts and suggestions, strengthened consensus on proposed goals, and reaffirmed their collective commitment to creating an inclusive, robust, and future-ready education system. Emphasis was placed on infrastructure, institutional collaboration, capacity building, and knowledge exchange.”
The declaration specifically outlines five key priorities: enhancing early childhood care and education; skills development, mutual recognition of qualifications, and improved collaboration under the BRICS TVET cooperation alliance; promoting collaborative research, innovation, and startups; mutual recognition of qualifications; and capacity building for academic leadership.
Pradhan mentioned that the meeting also provided new opportunities for institutional collaboration, capacity building, and knowledge sharing to create an inclusive and robust education system that meets future needs.
He also held bilateral meetings with education ministers from Iran, Indonesia, and South Africa, where they discussed enhancing cooperation in higher education, research, and innovation.
Regarding the Model BRICS initiative, Pradhan explained that it aims to familiarize youth with the workings of BRICS and provide them with a better understanding of diplomacy and multilateral cooperation. He indicated that detailed information about the declaration will be shared on the Ministry of Education’s website.
Pradhan expressed confidence that preliminary work on proposals and initiatives related to the BRICS summit has already begun, assuring that various states in India, including Odisha, will benefit from these initiatives.
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