French Embassy in India and the French Institute in India, along with the French Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation, and the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development, jointly organised Knowledge Summit, an Indo-French summit on higher education and research, recently.

Coinciding with the first state visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to India, the Knowledge Summit brought together education and research industry experts under one roof. The summit also witnessed the presence of Frédérique Vidal, French Minister of Higher Education and Research and Innovation, and Prakash Javadekar, Union Minister of Human Resource Development. The event was also organised  to mark the culmination of the four-month Indo-French cultural voyage Bonjour India.

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The Knowledge Summit was the first high-level Indo-French summit on higher education and research. More than 350 people from nearly 80 Indian institutions and 70 French institutions participated with key enterprises. It also received the support of the Union Ministry of Science and Technology, Campus France and Confederation of Indian Industry. Around 15 MoUs were signed between universities and research institutions on joint initiatives and partnerships during the summit. Most significantly, one MoU signed between France and India on 10 March now mutually recognises educational qualifications between both countries. Students graduating from Indian institutions will thus be eligible for further education in France, and vice-versa.

Additionally, a Franco-Indian Trust will offer even more scholarships and merit-based financial support provided to Indian students, who wish to study in France. The Knowledge Summit is an essential step toward the goal set by the French government to attract 10,000 students to France by 2020.  The summit explored seven priority sectors for collaboration: space and aeronautics; mathematics and information technology; agronomy and food processing; eco-energy; natural resources and bioactive compounds; architecture and urban planning; and urban mobility.

The agreements signed during the event aim to promote exchange of students and scholars between prestigious universities and institutes and facilitate shared research programmes. Such as the one between Institut Mines-Télécom Paris and IIT Indore, are broad agreements promoting this exchange at every level. Among the most significant, an agreement will set up a first-of-its-kind network of Institute of excellency between four ENS in France and seven IISER in India.

Others are very specific, such as the one between INSERM, Université Paris Diderot and Institute of Liver and Bilary Science, setting up a common research programme on liver diseases.