Ambassador of Tunisia Visits President NAGATA to Strengthen Ties

On November 18, His Excellency Mr. Ahmed CHAFRA, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Tunisia to Japan, led a delegation to visit University of Tsukuba. They met with President NAGATA Kyosuke, Vice President and Executive Director for Global Affairs IKEDA Jun, Professor ISODA Hiroko, Director of the Alliance for Research on the Mediterranean and North Africa (ARENA), and Professor KIGOSHI Hideo, Specially Appointed Professor for ARENA.

During the visit, Ambassador CHAFRA highlighted the strategic importance of University of Tsukuba as a partner for Tunisia and emphasized the potential for strengthening collaboration in higher education, science and technology, and fostering start-ups. President NAGATA expressed gratitude for Tunisia's long-standing support of the university's academic activities in the region and its collaboration in hosting the 4th Japan-North Africa University Summit held in July 2024 in Gammarth, Tunisia. Professor ISODA provided an overview of ARENA's achievements and introduced its future plans and prospects, as the center celebrates its 20th anniversary this year.

The delegation toured ARENA's facilities, including the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology's (AIST) University of Tsukuba Open Innovation Laboratory, where they observed the research platform for drug discovery and functional food development. This initiative integrates the University of Tsukuba's bioassay technologies with material conversion technologies provided by AIST.

Ambassador CHAFRA also met with three Tunisian students enrolled in the master's and doctoral programs who shared their positive experiences of Japanese culture and academic life. They also expressed aspirations to contribute to society using the knowledge gained during their studies. The Ambassador encouraged them to apply their learnings to support Tunisia's development.

The University of Tsukuba looks forward to fostering further collaboration with universities and research institutions in Tunisia, as well as with industries in both countries.