EU to Strengthen Partnership with Indian Universities on Higher Education ORGANIZES WORKSHOP ON FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES FROM THE CALL OF 2017 – ERASMUS+, JEAN MONNET AND MARIE SKŁODOWSKA-CURIE ACTIONS

HYDERABAD, 28th November 2016: The Delegation of the European Union to India, organized a workshop at the Taj Krishna on Monday, 28November 2016 for Vice Chancellors and academic leaders of Indian Universities and Higher Education Institutions to discuss funding opportunities for India-Europemobility and cooperation, through a range of EU-funded programmes, namely Erasmus+, Jean Monnet and Marie Sklodowska – Curie Actions (MSCA’s) for the Call of 2017, which has opened.

The workshop was attended by nearly 50 higher education stakeholders, from Vice Chancellors and Head of Institutions to a range of academic and administrative staff from higher education institutions. Its overall aim is to inform the stakeholders about the objectives, content and implementation modalities of Erasmus+, Jean Monnet and MSCAs with a view to increasing the participation and success rate of Indian students, researchers and higher education institutions, including their staff, for the Call of 2017 which is now open.

Dr. Cesare Onestini, Minister Counsellor and Deputy Head of the Delegation, European Union Delegation to India along with Prof Pramod Nayar from University of Hyderabad inaugurated the Workshop.

“India is the greatest beneficiary of Erasmus Mundus, the predecessor programme to Erasmus+.Between 2004 and 2016 around 5,000 Indian students from all parts of India have received Erasmus scholarships – recently at a rate of over 500 per year. New opportunities are now being offered, primarily for higher education institutions (HEIs), staff and students, meaning the door are open to even more Indian participation,” Dr. Onestini said.

A series of information workshops to promote awareness of Erasmus + programmes has been going on in major Indian cities since last year. After the workshop in 2015, there has been a major increase in the number of Indian institutions who are the beneficiary of Erasmus+ funding under Capacity Building Projects as well as in the number of students who received Erasmus+ Mobility Scholarships.

In-depth sessions were conducted by Dr. Onestini on the following topics: Capacity building in Higher Education, Joint Masters Degrees and Individual Mobility, Jean Monnet & Marie Sklodowski-Curie action.

The workshop was introduced and moderated by Mr. Sanjeev Roy, Senior Expert, Higher Education, DAI Europe who is Erasmus Mundus Alumni too.