During the period from 19 to 20 December 2025, a delegation from Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University took part in the Second Ministerial Conference of the Russia–Africa Partnership Forum, held in the capital of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Cairo, under the chairmanship of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Sergey Lavrov.
For the partnership, this was the first event of such a high level held directly on African soil. One of the most important items on the conference agenda was the technological and humanitarian sovereignty of African countries, in achieving which a key role is assigned to the transfer of knowledge and competencies in high-technology fields where Russia possesses unique experience.
During the Second Russia–Africa Summit in 2023 in Saint Petersburg, a large-scale cooperation plan for 2023–2026 was adopted, mechanisms for project implementation were agreed upon, and dozens of agreements were signed. It was precisely within the framework of this major international event that Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University established the university consortium “Nedra Africa” and launched fruitful cooperation between the Mining University and African higher education institutions.
The Cairo Conference of 2025 is regarded by the foreign policy agencies of Russia, Egypt, and other countries of the continent as a key stage in the organization of the forthcoming Third Russia–Africa Summit, scheduled for 2026 in one of the African states.
The discussion was opened by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt Abu Bakr Hefny Mahmoud, who characterized the conference as one of the concrete steps to move the discussions on Russian-African cooperation in the fields of business, science, culture, and education into a practical work format.
He reminded the participants that since the 1950s Egypt had served as a “gateway to Africa” for the Soviet Union, and that it was precisely the USSR that provided tangible assistance to the country in overcoming technological and personnel backwardness—an effort Egypt has never forgotten. In this context, the Deputy Minister noted his special affinity for Russian culture: he has read and greatly appreciates classic works of Russian literature, including Mother by Maxim Gorky, The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak.
The speech addressed the strong demand in Egypt and many other African countries for training courses aimed at managers and promising “high-potential” professionals in public administration and the business sector. This is also evidenced by the high level of competition for admission to the one-year, full-time program “Management of Subsoil Use Facilities,” which Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University implements for managers in the mineral resource complex of African countries.
The Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research of the Republic of Mali, Bourema Kansaye, who addressed the conference, recalled that throughout the entire 65 years of diplomatic relations, cooperation between our countries has always included the training of personnel for Mali by Russia.
This was perceived by the African Republic as indispensable assistance in providing its young and rapidly growing population with fair and full access to advanced education. Today, according to the Malian minister, Russia’s support in training local specialists is required for all major industrial projects in Africa, particularly those related to supplying the population with much-needed energy. He also emphasized Mali’s strong interest in the training of national mining engineers.
Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation Konstantin Mogilevsky emphasized that cooperation in the field of education is a long-term project. According to him, over the past 60 years more than 300,000 Africans have graduated from various Russian universities.
Mogilevsky reported that the Ministry will develop dual-degree programs between Russian and Egyptian universities, and that concrete plans for implementing these agreements are already under discussion. The Deputy Minister highlighted the work carried out in this area by Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University, in particular the university consortium Nedra Africa established by it, as well as the recently and successfully held Russian–African Raw Materials Dialogue in St. Petersburg. The University’s efforts to assist countries of the continent in training personnel for the effective utilization of their richest mineral resources and the industrialization of local economies were described by the Deputy Minister as an entirely new and unique approach.
On the second day of the ministerial conference, 20 December, during the plenary session, the significance of the Russian–African Raw Materials Dialogue held by the Mining University was particularly emphasized by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Sergey Lavrov. He described it as one of the key areas of cooperation and expressed hope that this dialogue would become a permanent platform for interaction between Russia and Africa in the field of subsoil use:
«One of the key areas of our cooperation is energy. Russia possesses unique experience across a wide range of segments of the fuel and energy cycle—from nuclear technologies and hydropower to the oil and gas industry and renewable energy sources. This was discussed during the first Russian–African Raw Materials Dialogue, which took place at the end of October this year at Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University and brought together more than 400 participants from 34 countries of the continent. We hope that this dialogue will become a permanent platform for interaction between Russia and Africa in the field of subsoil use».
The plenary session concluded with a report by the head of the Saint Petersburg Mining University delegation, Vice-Rector for International Affairs Evgeny Lyubin. Emphasis was placed on the fact that Africa requires assistance in developing its subsoil resources, overcoming technological backwardness, modernizing the continent’s economies, and addressing serious social challenges. The root cause of these problems lies in the insufficient sovereignty of African states, stemming from the lack of necessary technologies and, above all, from the shortage of trained engineering personnel in the mineral resource sector.
Specific assistance to African countries and educational institutions was proposed by the Mining University. The Vice-Rector spoke about the University’s approaches to training fully qualified engineering personnel and about the concrete results achieved in cooperation with the African scientific and educational community.
A separate task of the Mining University delegation at the conference was to discuss prospects for cooperation in training specialists for the mineral resource sector with Egypt’s educational authorities. The St. Petersburg representatives presented the new standards for training highly qualified engineers at Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University, as well as the program “Management of Subsoil Use Facilities.” Detailed information on potential joint educational projects will be submitted to the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research of Egypt.
The representative office of Rossotrudnichestvo in Cairo has expressed its readiness to join this work as an operator for selecting potential participants for the educational program “Management of Subsoil Use Facilities.”
In partnership with the Rossotrudnichestvo representative office, the Mining University may also take part in establishing, at the Russian House, a training center for vocational professions, including construction specialties, the processing of building and ornamental stone, as well as in organizing, on the premises of the Russian House, either in person or via videoconference, a meeting of Egyptian graduates of Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University.
One of the significant events held on the sidelines of the Second Ministerial Conference of the Russia–Africa Partnership Forum in Cairo was the dialogue “Strengthening Trilateral Cooperation” organized by the international platform of the Roscongress Foundation, Roscongress International.
