More and better Knowledge creates a better life

Culture and Education

“Cross-border socio-cultural co-operation in every area of life is a precondition for sustainable co-operation in economic, environmental and infrastructure matters. It involves an on-going process to raise knowledge about the neighbours and their mentality and breaks down mistrust and prejudice, and is a precondition to build up confidence in neighbouring border regions.

Universities

In order to tackle the question of potentials of the three universities of Nis, Skopje and Sofia to take a leading role in cross-border educational and scientific co-operation a research has been carried out recently, after which a protocol on trilateral co-operation has been signed. O questions of strategic reforms, the rectors agreed to work on the compatibility with worldwide and European adopted standards, recognized in the Bologna Declaration, to build Regional Academic Centres for strategic decision-making stakeholders of the region, to create a Commission for the harmonization of educational programmes, to finalize the mutual recognition of diplomas. The needs and priorities of our border regions in this sphere involve producing the knowledge and skills, which will support the endogenous development of the area.Further needs include upgrading and creating new skills (e.g. information and communications technologies, marketing and management) to improve the competitiveness and market access of the private sector, and to promote the efficiency and effectiveness of the public sector. One of the many reasons, why the long term success of Euroregional development will depend on the parallel improvement of the educational sector.