The five-year agreements were signed during an institutional visit to Namibia's capital Windhoek this week.
In addition to continuing the ongoing exchange between the institutions, the partners have also discussed concrete areas for cooperation in research and development.
Long-standing cooperation
The University of Namibia (UNAM) has been a partner to INN University for a long time, mainly in the area of exchange.
“Ever since the 1990s, the institution has sent 30 students annually from the Norwegian Inland region on three-months’ internships at UNAM. These students come from our teaching, pre-school teacher, and nursing programmes. This is one of the benefits of the collaboration that we will now continue,” says Rector Peer Jacob Svenkerud.
Over the years, several hundred students from INN University have had internships in Namibia, and INN University has also welcomed students from UNAM each year.
Website of the University of Namibia
New partner
The Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) has become a new collaboration partner for INN University through a new agreement between the institutions.
NUST has developed from being a polytechnic institute to a highly modern and ambitious university with several overlapping interests with INN University.
“The meeting with the university was inspiring and confirmed that INN University has many new opportunities for collaboration, especially in research,” says Svenkerud.
Website of Namibia University of Science and Technology
48 000 students
UNAM has a total of 30,000 registered students across 12 campuses spread throughout Namibia. NUST has 18,000 students spread over two campuses.
Both offer extensive basic education for teachers and nurses, and strong research environments in areas such as agriculture, land management, economics, and management.
INN University's expertise in AR and VR technology attracted strong interest at both Namibian institutions; this competence can be relevant in a number of subject areas.
Research in sustainable agriculture, wilderness management, and biotechnology also stood out as highly relevant areas for future research collaboration.
Reciprocal visits
Representatives from UNAM and NUST were part of an official Namibian delegation during a state visit to Norway in May. Among other things, the delegation visited INN University's campus at Elverum.
INN University's visit to Namibia this week was a reciprocal visit after the state visit. The delegation from INN University visited six different campuses in five days.
“The visit has shown that both Namibian universities can be proud of the results they have achieved and of the opportunities they have going forward. They assign great importance to interaction with their surroundings, and to ensuring that research and education are relevant and useful in a society with both great challenges and opportunities,” concludes Svenkerud.
Contact
- ine.wigernas@inn.no
- Phone
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