Abai KazNPU Strengthens Strategic Partnership with Leading French Universities within the Framework of the University of Lorraine Branch.

On 9 October 2026, the University of Lorraine (France) hosted a strategic meeting of the leaders of four universities—the Abai Kazakh National Pedagogical University and three leading French universities. The meeting focused on expanding international academic cooperation, developing joint educational and research initiatives, and strengthening the activities of the University of Lorraine Branch at Abai KazNPU through a strategic partnership.

The Abai KazNPU delegation comprised Chairman of the Management Board – Rector Bolat Tilep; Director of the Sorbonne–Kazakhstan Institute and the University of Lorraine Branch at Abai KazNPU Ainur Sabitova; and Director of the Department of International Cooperation at Abai KazNPU Bayan Sapargaliyeva.

The strategic meeting was attended by President of the University of Lorraine Hélène Boulanger; President of the University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne Christophe Clément; Professor Frédéric Richard, who represented the University of Poitiers on behalf of its President; as well as vice-presidents of the French universities.

The further development of the University of Lorraine Branch at Abai KazNPU through a strategic partnership with French universities was central to the meeting’s agenda. Particular attention was paid to expanding student and faculty mobility, implementing joint and dual-degree programmes, strengthening research cooperation, and establishing a sustainable international model of inter-university collaboration.

A key outcome of the strategic meeting was the signing by the four universities of a Letter of Intent on Strategic Cooperation concerning the operation of the branch. The document confirms the parties’ shared commitment to developing a long-term multilateral strategic partnership within the framework of the University of Lorraine Branch at Abai KazNPU, bringing together the educational, research, and institutional potential of the Kazakh and French universities.

The signing marked an important milestone in the institutionalisation of a new cooperation framework aimed at further developing the branch, expanding international academic collaboration, and creating additional opportunities for joint educational and research projects.

The initiative is intended to strengthen Abai KazNPU’s position as an international academic platform that connects the Kazakh and European higher education systems and promotes educational and research ties between Kazakhstan and France.

During the strategic meeting, the parties also emphasised the importance of jointly participating in European and international calls for proposals, grant initiatives, and programmes, including Erasmus+. Such cooperation will expand opportunities for academic exchanges, attract additional funding, and facilitate the implementation of joint educational, research, and institutional projects.

The proposed strategic partnership model is based on the active participation of each university, taking into account its academic profile, institutional capacity, and accumulated experience in international cooperation.

The University of Lorraine will assume overall coordination of the branch within the strategic partnership framework, prioritising its further development at Abai KazNPU and drawing on its experience in implementing international educational and research initiatives.

The University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne and the University of Poitiers will contribute to the development and implementation of the branch’s joint educational and research projects in line with their respective academic fields and areas of specialisation. Specific areas of cooperation will be jointly determined by all partners, taking into account their mutual interests, priorities, and available capacities.

Abai KazNPU will serve as the key Kazakh partner, coordinating joint activities at the national level, promoting academic mobility, implementing educational and research initiatives, and facilitating their integration into the educational and research landscape of Kazakhstan and Central Asia.

This cooperation framework lays the foundation for pooling the universities’ institutional and intellectual resources, advancing interdisciplinary research, exchanging leading academic practices, and training highly qualified professionals who are in demand amid the global transformation of higher education and research.

The development of the University of Lorraine Branch through a strategic partnership involving the University of Lorraine, the University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne, and the University of Poitiers opens up new prospects for the further internationalisation of Abai KazNPU, improving the quality and international competitiveness of its educational programmes, and expanding academic and research opportunities for students, faculty members, and early-career researchers.

This initiative is particularly significant in the context of strengthening Kazakh–French cooperation in higher education and research, as well as developing international institutional frameworks that make it possible to unite the potential of leading foreign universities at Abai KazNPU.

The strategic meeting held at the University of Lorraine marked an important step towards developing the University of Lorraine Branch at Abai KazNPU as a long-term multilateral strategic partnership founded on academic trust, mutual exchange of experience, institutional continuity, and a shared commitment to achieving sustainable outcomes.

The cooperation of the four universities within the framework of the University of Lorraine Branch at Abai KazNPU creates new opportunities for advancing higher education, educational and legal research, expanding international research collaboration, and strengthening academic ties between Kazakhstan and France.

The implementation of the agreements reached will further strengthen the role of Abai KazNPU—Kazakhstan’s oldest teacher-training university—as one of the key centres of international academic cooperation, bringing together the educational and research potential of Kazakhstan, France, and the European higher education landscape.