"Tomsk Polytechnic University has been training marketable specialists for the nuclear industry for more than 70 years. Among our graduates are heads of ministries and agencies, top executives of corporations, as well as engineering and management staff of the leading nuclear enterprises. Through close cooperation with Rosatom State Corporation, where TPU is a backbone university, we have been developing international nuclear programs. Tomsk Polytechnic University has already become a platform for the development of human resources in nuclear engineering in Indonesia, Bolivia, Egypt and a number of other Rosatom's partner countries. Today, Nigeria has officially joined the pool of our partner countries. Tomsk Polytechnic University will become a backbone platform in Russia for training personnel in nuclear and other nuclear-related fields for the Federal Republic of Nigeria. We appreciate the trust placed in us, and I am convinced that our cooperation will be fruitful and mutually beneficial," commented Leonid Sukhikh, Acting Rector of TPU. He added that some graduates of the university's international nuclear education programs are already employed by the Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission and successfully apply their knowledge and expertise to develop nuclear technologies in their country.
The memorandum was signed at the 67th session of the IAEA General Conference in Vienna. On behalf of Tomsk Polytechnic University, the memorandum was signed by Vera Verkhoturova, Rector's Advisor for External Affairs, and on behalf of the Nigerian Atomic Energy Commission by Abdullahi A. Mati, Director of Nuclear Power Plant Development Programme. The signing ceremony was attended by Marina Belyaeva, Deputy Director for International Operation – Director of International Cooperation Department at Rosatom State Corporation, Professor Yusuf Amin Ahmed, Chairman of the Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission, and representatives of the Commission and the Nuclear Technology Center of Nigeria.
He emphasized that Russia supports Nigeria in building capacity as part of the national nuclear project and thanked Tomsk Polytechnic University for training specialists in nuclear physics and engineering for the national economy of Nigeria.I believe this is just the beginning of a long-lasting cooperation. At the moment, about 40 students from Nigeria are already pursuing master's and postgraduate programs in nuclear energy. And we hope that this number will continue to grow,
The key areas of cooperation between TPU and the Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission comprise, inter alia, joint educational programs, including dual degree programs with Nigerian universities, student academic exchange, distance learning, workshops, courses, and research in nuclear physics and technology.
Earlier, representatives of the Nuclear Technology Center of Nigeria paid a working visit to Tomsk Polytechnic University. They learnt about international educational programs, visited the university's research laboratories, and had a meeting with TPU students from Nigeria.
Today, the nuclear industry in Nigeria is rapidly growing. There is a number of agreements between Russia and Nigeria on the development of nuclear projects in the peaceful use of nuclear technology, as well as on the construction and operation of a nuclear power plant and a multipurpose research reactor center on the territory of the Republic of Nigeria. To address the ambitious goals of the nuclear power program, the Nigerian partners need to advance their human resource potential.
