Sergey Lavrov at MGIMO Supervisory and Board of Trustees Meeting

20 December 2018

December 20th, a joint meeting of the Board of Trustees and the Supervisory Board of MGIMO, chaired by Sergey Lavrov, was convened at the Russian Foreign Ministry.

The Russian Foreign Minister spoke of the dynamic development experienced by MGIMO in 2018 and the University’s dedication to constantly modernizing and extending its array of educational programs. This year alone, MGIMO launched three joint programs with leading Russian technical universities: An MA and MBA program with NITU «MISiS» on international commodity markets and a joint MBA with MIPT on the digital economy. MGIMO is also extending its international reach by opening branches in Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan, which will be fully functional by autumn 2019. The demand for MGIMO’s excellent standards is high in Russia as well, with a Government Decree requesting the University to create a stand-alone division at the Far Eastern Federal University by 2020. MGIMO’s Gorchakov Lyceum is increasingly popular, so much so that the University has seized the initiative to train teachers for Russian schools abroad.

Sergey Lavrov emphasized the importance of 2019 as the 75th anniversary of MGIMO, which will be celebrated on multiple occasions including the V International MGIMO Alumni Forum in Uzbekistan scheduled for mid-April. MGIMO successfully realized its mission of being a platform for various international events: the Russian-Czech discussion forum and the Russian-French Trianon dialogue. The Foreign Minister spoke about the educational project MGIMO is developing at the request of the Ministry of Agriculture aimed at training agricultural attaches and students specializing in international agricultural markets. During the meeting, the Minister of Agriculture Dmitry Patrushev and MGIMO Rector Anatoly Torkunov signed an agreement on the creation of a department dedicated to the international agro-industrial complex.

Anatoly Torkunov gave a detailed account to the members of the board on the University’s development priorities and main tasks for 2019. The Rector noted that the current strategy expires in 2020 and that the year should be dedicated to defining ambitious new goals for the five upcoming years. While the University upholds its tradition of training top-notch diplomats, it offers its students a vast range of specialties in economics, law, information technology, government, corporate governance and fosters the interdisciplinary nature of its programs. MGIMO’s strength is in its identity and its long-standing traditions should be preserved, especially in times of rapid development. The Rector also remarked on the work put into improving language training, expanding pre-university training programs, developing Masters programs with prominent corporate partners, developing research useful to policymakers and other stakeholders and increasing publication activity in foreign languages. Anatoly Torkunov finished his speech by thanking VTB Bank and the partners and trustees of the University for their ongoing support.