IIT Delhi, New Delhi
Abu Dhabi: After the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras), it is the turn of IIT Delhi to spread its wings out of India. While IIT Madras earlier this month announced setting up its campus in Zanzibar in Tanzania, IIT Delhi today inked a pact to open its campus in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to set a “brand new template for leveraging the power of knowledge and unfolding a new chapter in the internationalisation of India’s education”.
In this regard, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Ministry of Education and Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK), and the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) to establish 1st campus of IIT Delhi in Abu Dhabi, today.
The signing took place in the presence of Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE and Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India. Modi arrived at Abu Dhabi today morning and was welcomed by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the airport.
The campus is expected to launch its academic programs in 2024 and a host of bachelor’s, master’s and PhD programmes, and operate research centres related to sustainable energy and climate studies, as well as computing and data sciences. It is expected to offer a diverse range of programmes covering Energy and Sustainability, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Science and Engineering, Mathematics and Computing and other disciplines of engineering, sciences, and humanities.
Complementing the ongoing UAE-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), the MoU reflected the shared vision of both nations to prioritize educational excellence, innovation, knowledge exchange, and investments in human capital as the foundations for future prosperity and enablers of long-term economic growth and sustainable development.
Sara Musallam, UAE’s Minister of State for Early Education, said the MoU represents an important step in Abu Dhabi’s commitment to accelerate a world-class education system that serves the national development goals and priorities. “The execution of this MoU marks a milestone in our plans towards actualizing a globally competitive education ecosystem. In line with our national strategy, this MoU reflects our commitment to providing world-class educational experiences. We anticipate that the IIT Delhi – Abu Dhabi partnership will support our transition towards fostering an environment that nurtures innovation and accelerates high-level research,” she said.
The Abu Dhabi campus will contribute to the academic, research and innovation ecosystem in Abu Dhabi through collaboration with key players such as Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, Khalifa University, New York University Abu Dhabi, Technology Innovation Institute, and Hub71 to offer complimentary programmes, conduct cutting edge research, and advance the local startup ecosystem.
IIT Delhi – Abu Dhabi graduates will join an illustrious alumni network of graduates from 23 campuses across India. With outstanding credentials, IIT Delhi recently ranked among the world’s top 50 institutions for engineering and technology. It also scored a top 30 rank for global employability in the 2022 QS World University Rankings. IIT Delhi has been a frontline contributor to India’s Research and Development ecosystem in sectors ranging from defence, healthcare, and rural development, to transportation, information technology, and software.
– global bihari bureau
