A delegation composed of officials from Gazi University in Ankara and the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) paid a visit to Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech (UCAM) last Tuesday. This trip is part of strengthening cooperation relations between UCAM and Gazi University and the implementation of the framework agreement signed in May 2014 in Ankara between the two institutions. This concerns the development of joint programmes in the field of scientific research as well as the exchange of visits by students and professors.
The visit of the Turkish delegation was an opportunity for both parties to examine the prospects for academic cooperation so that this centre of interest can accompany the exemplary economic and diplomatic relations between Morocco and Turkey. In this context, the participants believed that the university can serve as an ideal platform for consolidating bilateral relations through the conclusion of scientific and cultural partnership agreements between higher education institutions in both countries. The members of the Turkish delegation also learned about the various projects of UCAM, including the establishment of a digital library equipped with the most modern technologies and providing access, in particular, to databases, digital books, theses, and dissertations.
It should be recalled that an important Turkish delegation composed of academics, researchers representing universities and scientific research centres, and think tanks stayed in Marrakech in November 2013, as part of a meeting initiated around the theme: "Moroccan-Turkish relations: reality and prospects".
During this meeting, both parties expressed their enthusiasm to forge close academic relations and to work so that the university opens up more to its environment and constitutes a true parallel diplomacy accompanying the economic and political orientations of both countries.
Voted the best university in Morocco, UCAM has distinguished itself in numerous international rankings for scientific excellence. With all these performances, Cadi Ayyad University is taking a new turn and is tracing its path step by step to become a reference in Africa and the Arab world.
