The Commission on Higher Education and the Council of Higher Education of Turkey renewed their academic partnerships to boost cooperation in the areas of science and technology, engineering, and fisheries.

CHEd chairperson Prospero de Vera III and CoHE president Erol Özvar met at the sidelines of the Eurasia Higher Education Summit in Istanbul to identify new areas of collaboration after the completion of the five year memorandum of agreement signed in 2018 between the two ministries. 

In December 2019, De Vera together with MSU-Naawan Chancellor Elnor Roa, Chancellor Ricardo Babaran of the University of the Philippines Visayas, and president Godelyn Hisole of Iloilo State College of Fisheries, traveled to Turkey for an academic mission in fisheries and marine science.

While the Covid-19 pandemic slowed down the higher education collaboration between the two countries, the CHEd approved and funded a project supporting this collaboration.

On 17-28 September 2022, MSU at Naawan and other fisheries schools met their counterparts to forge collaboration activities such as sending five graduate students to Kastamonu University and Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University in Turkey, panel membership of Turkish faculty members to theses and dissertations of graduate students, membership of MSU Naawan faculty member to the official journal of COMU, and new five-year memorandum of agreement between CHEd and CoHE is now ready for signing.

“We should think of possible opportunities in the fisheries first, then we can extend our cooperation to other areas,” Özvar said.

De Vera said the meeting during the EURIE Conference aims to broaden the scope of cooperation to include Science and Technology and engineering.

“While we continue to push for partnerships in fisheries, it is now possible to expand by bringing together universities with excellent Science, Technology, and Engineering programs from both countries. We recognize Turkey’s world-class quality of education, especially in engineering and technology,” De Vera said.

De Vera and Ambassador Bensurto also thanked the Turkish government for their support for the peace process in Mindanao.

Upon the initiative of Ozvar, the two parties also discussed the possibility of collaboration in university research partnerships in the defense industry by combining education, research and development, and industrial partnerships. De Vera also pushed for upskilling and reskilling programs by universities consistent with the instructions of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to CHEd and other government agencies.

CHEd and Turkey’s Council of Higher Education expressed their commitment to sign a new memorandum of agreement to formalize the agreed-upon areas of cooperation. 

In addition to the memorandum of agreement, a technical working group will be created to be led by the Philippine Ambassador in Turkey and CoHE, and representatives of the six Philippine universities in attendance to develop a work plan to implement projects in the identified areas of cooperation.