The German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov participated in the ceremony of placing a time capsule for the first graduates of the newly inaugurated Kazakh-German Institute of Sustainable Engineering in Aktau, QazMonitor reports citing the PM's press service.
The institute operates in collaboration with leading technical universities in Germany and is based at Yessenov University. The establishment of the new educational institution in the region coincides with significant energy projects taking place in Mangystau, specifically one of the region’s key projects – the Kazakh-German green hydrogen plant.
The institute is expected to train skilled technical specialists from the local youth, following best practices in the field of engineering. The undergraduate classes for the first cohort of students will commence in September of this year.
This year's program will offer two undergraduate programs – Energy and Environmental Engineering at Hamburg Technical University, and Logistics at the Technical University of Applied Sciences Wildau. The comprehensive curriculum includes three years of study at Yessenov University and one and a half years of study at a partner university in Germany. Therefore, significant emphasis will be placed on learning the German language within the curriculum.
In the future, the educational program will expand to include eight bachelor's and six master's programs in industrial automation and robotics, water and waste management, renewable energy development, technological engineering, Internet of Things, data science, and artificial intelligence. The students in Aktau will have the opportunity to study at Germany's leading universities, including Anhalt University, Technical University of Darmstadt, Technical University of Applied Sciences Wildau, Technical University of Berlin, Hamburg Technical University, and others.
During his speech, President Steinmeier emphasized the mutual benefit of training qualified engineers for both Kazakhstan and German companies.
"Both countries need good specialists. I am sure that the future of this institute and its graduates will be bright. This is a very important project in the field of education. Cooperation between our countries in this field and in research will continue to grow," said Steinmeier.
Prime Minister Smailov added that the development of the green economy is one of the key global trends, aimed at preserving natural resources and ensuring sustainable development. Experts predict a significant increase in global demand for hydrogen in various industries, including metal processing, chemical production, and transportation.
"We are not falling behind global trends and are also striving to adopt clean technologies within our country. The green economy in the Mangystau region will reduce the region's dependence on the oil and gas industry, create new job opportunities, and improve the quality of life for the population," said Smailov.