At the very beginning of the meeting, Committee Chairman Prof. Dr Marko Atlagic took the opportunity to thank the delegation for the initiative to meet and exchange experiences in the field of educational system and burgeoning high technologies. In his address, he thanked Georgia for respecting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Republic of Serbia in not recognising the so-called state of Kosovo. Responding to the delegation’s inquiries, the Committee Chairman briefly informed the delegated about the educational system in our country, stating that Serbia has 562 preschool institutions, 1275 schools and 187 higher education institutions, educating over a million students and employing more than 150,000 people. He added that Serbia has also introduced a dual education system, which is attended by 9476 students, and emphasised that the students achieve enviable results in international competitions in various fields. He pointed out that the construction of the BIO4 Campus, which will house six faculties, seven institutes, and numerous laboratories, is in progress, and that it will present an ideal opportunity for academics, scientists, and professors from all over the world to connect. He also stressed that our country has a Research and Development Institute for Artificial Intelligence, four technology parks, and a Data Centre in Kragujevac.

The head of the delegation, Nikoloz Samkharadze said that Georgia is currently undergoing a reform process aimed at harmonising the demands of the labour market and higher education. The delegation was also interested in the digitalisation process, and Atlagic said that this initiative in Serbia was launched by the current National Assembly Speaker Ana Brnabic.

The officials also exchanged opinions on the legislative framework in the areas of technological development, student exchange programmes and academic cooperation between universities and research institutes.

The two sides also agreed that student exchange encourages the opportunity to learn languages and better understand each other, and concluded that education plays one of the main roles in fostering interpersonal ties and strengthening the overall relationship between Serbia and Georgia.