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Ндонго Нлате Жан Мартьаль
Ассистент кафедры Теории и истории международных отношений.
Российский Университет Дружбы Народов (РУДН).
Российская дипломатия в области образования в Африке: пример Университета Дружбы Народов (РУДН)
Ndongo Nlate Jean Martial
Assistant lecturer at the department of Theory and History of International Relations. People's Friendship University of Russia (RUDN).
Russia's diplomacy of education in Africa: the case of the People's Friendship University (RUDN)
HISTORIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF THE RUSSIAN AFRICAN RELATIONSHIP
The year 1960 is historically called the "Year of Africa" in that seventeen sovereign African countries appeared on the map of the continent [1]. The USSR was thus one of the international forces in the decolonisation of Africa. Thus, Igor Ivanov, then Russian Foreign Minister, pointed out in 2001 that: "Our country played a vanguard role in the decolonisation of Africa and helped several countries in their struggle for independence. Today's African leaders remember this very well"[2]. Almost two decades later, in March 2018, in an interview on the sidelines of his African tour, Sergei Lavrov said, "Russia has actively promoted the independence of African countries, the formation and strengthening of their states"[3]. Contracts on economic, cultural, scientific and technical cooperation served as the legal basis for establishing relations between Russia and African countries. These agreements generally provided for "the promotion of the exchange of knowledge between countries with the aim of gaining a better insight into the life of the nations concerned in the field of culture, science, education, art, medicine, sport and the encouragement of cooperation between organisations and institutions in these fields'' [1]. To this end, invitations to cooperation in the field of education became, there-
fore, an important part of the new verbal strategy of the Soviet leadership very early on [4]. They understood that in the newly liberated countries, especially in Black Africa, the most urgent need was to train cadres of a sufficient level to enable them to take on the burdens of developing the national economy and to set up states on the Western or Soviet model. A number of Soviet universities made a significant contribution to this task. Among them, of course, the Moscow State University, but also and above all the Patrice Lumumba Peoples' Friendship University, whose name was borne by the URAP for almost 30 years [5].
Named at the time in honour of the great Congolese pan-Africanist leader, who was assassinated shortly after his country's independence, it is now called the Russian University of Peoples' Friendship (RUDN). Because of the small number of higher education institutions in Africa, the only possible solution was to send young people to foreign universities, especially Russian ones, through scholarship offers.
The years following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 marked a dramatic reduction in Russian involvement in scholarship in Africa. Faced with a deep economic and financial crisis and major domestic challenges, the Russian state focused primarily on dealing with the shock of the collapse of the Soviet system and the ensuing domestic crisis. Deprived of financial means and significant levers of action, the diplomacy of the new Russia was reduced to a few orientations that did not include the African continent [6]. As a result, post-Soviet Russia's Africa policy was to mark a considerable break with the Soviet posture of actively promoting its ideological, economic and military influence on the continent, when the Yeltsin government initiated a withdrawal from relations with Africa, closing embassies, consulates and cultural centres[2].
From the 2000s onwards, returning to relative economic health, and probably also in reaction to concerns that other powers (emerging or traditional) were intensifying their presence in Africa in order to gain secure access to natural resources and energy reserves, Moscow changed its approach, showing a clear desire to re-establish a presence in the region. To this end, Vladimir Putin's diplomatic representatives were quick to recall the importance of past relations and Soviet-era support for Africa [2]. Thus, Russia's diplomatic activity in recent years reflects a renewed interest in Africa and a ''willingness to put its foot down more firmly on the African continent''[7].
The visit of Russian Prime Minister Medvedev to Algeria and Morocco on 9 and 10 October 2017, an event that had not occurred since 1971, was followed by the tour of Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to sub-Saharan
Africa in March 2018, crossing five states of the continent: Angola, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia and Ethiopia - the most important trip of Russian diplomacy in Africa for 30 years. The new agreements signed, in a plurality of registers, with the Central African Republic (CAR) in 2018, not only strengthen the friendship between the two countries, but open a new era in the geopolitics of powers in Central Africa and even in Africa. The CAR, used to collaborating with France, has made a change in its foreign policy orientation, the objective of which is to weaken the French presence on its territory. However, the French would not want anyone else to display ambitions concerning the traditional territories they have administered for so long.
This shows that Africa has never ceased to arouse the interest and attract the covetousness of the powers (great and emerging), often raising the suspicion of a new form of colonisation on a presence which is announced as strictly economic and commercial but which inevitably plays on a geopolitical background.
In short, after a period of hesitation following the break-up of the USSR, Vladimir Putin has gradually reactivated Russian-African cooperation, which seems to have accelerated significantly since the deterioration of relations between Russia and the West since 2014. The strengthening of Russia's African policy is therefore part of a tradition based firstly on historical legitimacy, born of Russia's involvement in the decolonisation struggles of several African countries, and secondly on the promotion of the principles of non-interference and neutrality as the basis of the partnership with Africa. Scientific diplomacy between this country and the African continent is developing through university exchanges and the proliferation of Russian cultural centres in Africa.
RUSSIA'S NEW UNIVERSITY GOVERNANCE
The reform of Russian higher education in the mid-2000s was part of a large-scale state reform project launched at the beginning of Vladimir Putin's second term. This reform gave the Federal State the means to reinvest in a public sphere that had escaped its control in the 1990s. The ranking of the Russian system reflects a kind of isolation, which is reflected in the relatively low number of foreign students on its soil. Despite some significant progress, it should be remembered that in 2004 Russia received only 3.1% of international student flows compared to 23.5% for the United States of America. It was in this hope of breaking out of isolation that Russia joined the Bologna Process. The end of the twentieth and beginning of the twenty-first century is thus characterised by European-
■ isation and internationalisation, which are pushing Russian universities
to adopt models that are open to the world and based on exchanges and comparable curricula.
In 2003, Russia decided to join the Bologna Process in order to accelerate the flexibility and efficiency of its educational system [8]. It is true that this mysterious Bologna process presented by the then Minister of Education Vladimir Filippov was repeatedly criticised by representatives of the educational community, who were much more reluctant, if not opposed, to Russia's joining the process. Nevertheless, Russia's participation in the Bologna Process proves that it does not see its development in terms of isolation and self-sufficiency. This strengthening of ties with the European Union (EU) is a ''principled choice'' for Russia, as Vladimir Putin ambivalently states.
The internationalisation of higher education and research has become an element of the prestige of large states, a source of revenue within the country and a vector of its influence outside [9]. Investing in the internationalisation of higher education in Russia is necessary in the context of increasing international competition and diversification of forms of internationalisation. Internationalisation is defined as ''the process of integrating an international, intercultural or global dimension into the purpose, functions or delivery of higher education'' [10]. Russia intends to make this one of the means by which it can regain its great power [9].
With globalisation, international university exchanges are a new power issue for states. Indeed, education responds to a growing need for a qualified workforce, likely to occupy strategic positions. Knowledge has become a state asset that directly influences the productivity of economic agents and constitutes an essential source of income. Russia is therefore closely observing the models of advanced and emerging countries (in particular, China) to define its development strategy. Science, innovation, high technology and education are seen as the main factors of competitiveness in a globalised world [8].
The knowledge economy has become a term frequently used by Russian leaders in defining the country's strategic goals. These terms appeared in President Vladimir Putin's speech to the General Assembly in 2000. Russia's new ambitions are now expressed in medium and long-term economic strategy documents. In July 2007, the Ministry of Development and Trade prepared a document entitled ''Conception of Russia's Economic Development until 2020''. One of the stated objectives is to create a model of economy based on innovation and knowledge [8]. Russia therefore intends to maintain its competitiveness in this area and even use
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it as a tool for international influence. Attracting foreign students and in- ■
tensifying academic and heuristic cooperation is an ambition recognised at the highest level. Moreover, in 2003, at the Congress of the Union of Rectors of Russian Universities, President Vladmir Putin described the training of foreign specialists in Russian higher education establishments as an ''absolute priority mission'' [8]. Together with Russia, Africa has trained more than 400 thousand quality specialists. In 15 African countries Russia has built secondary and higher educational institutions.
This is why RUDN, a Moscow university that is highly internationalised by its nature, is a vector of power for Russia.
RUDN AND THE FORMATION OF AFRICAN ELITES
The university in Russia developed under the strong tutelage of the centralised monarchy [8]. As a result, one of the characteristics of the Russian university system during the empire was its dependence on the politics and personality of the ruling monarch. This legacy could be perpetuated around RUDN, which was created with the aim of educating the elites of foreign countries friendly to the USSR (Africa, Latin America, Asia) and countries that were part of the USSR (Armenia, Azerbaijan, etc.). The university was founded on February 5, 1960, and was named after Patrice Lumumba as a geographical pivot of history with Africa on February 22, 1961. In 1992, after the break-up of the USSR, the university was renamed the Russian University of Peoples' Friendship (RUDN).
Since then, it was believed that the memory of Patrice Lumumba had been scorned, while Russia was resolutely committed to intensifying its university cooperation with all African countries. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that after the fall of the USSR, the university has a majority of Russian students, while keeping the strong spirit of internationalisation but with other objectives [8]. In this sense, it has remained one of the few Russian universities that can present a field for a study of changes in the place and strategy of the university in the international space. It occupies the 74th place among the best universities in developing countries of Europe and Central Asia in the international QS Universty Ranking 2016/2017 and is among the top 200 universities in the world in the World University Ranking (RUR) in the criterion of teaching quality (the 104th place) and international student mobility ( 36th place) .
THE DYNAMICS OF DIPLOMATIC-SCIENTIFIC EXCHANGE
For more than a decade now, relations between RUDN and Africa
have been on the rise in terms of diplomatic-scientific exchanges as they _
have become increasingly dense. This intense activity is crowned by frequent exchanges of delegations.
The relationship between scientific research and diplomatic issues is what is known today as "science diplomacy''. In this respect, the year 2006 is of particular importance to RUDN's ambitions, especially the visit of Vladimir Putin as Head of State to South Africa. This was the first visit by a Russian head of state to a state south of the Sahara. From that date until 2018, RUDN and Africa will intensify the exchange of delegations which confirm the excellent quality of their relations. Without being exhaustive, several high-level African delegations have visited RUDN. For example, in February 2010, the first President of Namibia, Sam Nujoma, visited RUDN. In the same year and month, Adoa Gaspar Ferreira Do Nasci-mento, Secretary of State for Higher Education, followed the same ritual. In July of the same year, Abderrahmane Silla, Vice-President of the National Assembly of Mali, revisited his former university where he studied. In the same vein, in May 2011, John Dramani Mahama, vice-president of the Republic of Ghana, visited RUDN. In October 2013, the Minister of Education of the Republic of Mozambique, Aujusto John Louis also visited RUDN. In June 2016, the President of Guinea Conakry, Alpha Conde, visited RUDN and was also awarded an honorary doctorate. The numerous visits of African university rectors to this university, not to mention the 59th anniversary celebration in February 2019, with the participation of several African countries, cannot be overlooked as an opportunity to intensify their cooperation.
As for the Russian side, its diplomatic-scientific offensive towards Africa has been manifested through the visits of some important personalities from Rudn. In March 2017, Efremova Larissa, Vice-Rector for International Cooperation, led a delegation from the university to Kenya. In November 2018, she visited Zambia and in the presence of the Zambian Minister of Higher Education, Nkandu Luo M, she inaugurated the Russian language and pre-university learning centre at Copperbelt University (Zambia). In October and November 2018, First Vice-Rector Evgeny Schesniak led a delegation on an African tour to Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire and Cameroon. Several other visits have been made to Africa with the aim of having loyal allies in African countries.
During the Soviet era, university education in the USSR was among the best in the world. In the midst of the Cold War, the country wanted to use its universities on the one hand to make a name for itself in an additional field and on the other hand to train foreign executives, most often from countries that had just freed themselves from colonisation. This
method worked rather well, since many senior executives from Asian, African and Latin American countries, including several heads of state, were trained in the USSR.RUDN thus seems to follow a logic well defined by the federal state on the African continent. While it is present in Africa for academic reasons, it has also understood that it should be an important part of Russia's projection on the African scene. It is also a question of Russia, once the scientific and technological leader of the socialist bloc, reviving and strengthening a heritage of excellence in this area, under favourable macroeconomic conditions. However, success is not achieved in one go or by a move, it is the result of a multitude of actions with varied objectives, but in the service of a strategy and victory is translated into the acquisition of zones of influence. An observation of Russian scientific diplomacy around RUDN suggests that there is still work to be done to make its way in Africa, to defuse the ideological clichés of which Russia is a victim on the international scene, to break the language barrier in a multilingual and multicultural Africa by spreading the Russian language and culture, to invest more in Africa in order to capitalise on the qualified African labour force with Russian training.
Библиографический список / References
1. Ponomarenko L.V., Zueva E.G. «I'm Proud to be the Graduate of this Great University»: Graduate Students of Peoples' Friendship University of Russia from Africa. RUDN Journal of World History, 2009. № 2. P. 82-88.
2. Giles, Keir. Russian interests in sub-Saharan Africa. Strategic Studies Institute and US Army War College Press, 2013. 51 p.
3. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's statement and responses to media questions at a news conference following talks with Angolan Minister of Foreign Affairs Manuel Domingos Augusto, Luanda, March 5, 2018. // URL: https://mid.ru/en/foreign_policy/news/1565388
4. Bartenev, Vladimir. L'URSS et l'Afrique noire sous Khrouchtchev: la mise à jour des mythes de la coopération. Outre-Mers. Revue d'histoire, 2007. Vol. 94, № 354. P. 63-82.
5. Katsiakoris, Constantin. Ponomarenko, Ludmila V. & Zueva, Elena G. L'URAP et l'Afrique. Cahiers d'études africaines, 2017. № 226. P. 471-473.
6. Facon Isabelle. Russia's quest for influence in North Africa and the Middle East. Observatoire du monde arabo-musulman et du Sahel, 2017.
7. Dubien A. La. Russie s' intéresse également à la nouvelle Afrique. 2017 // URL: http:// afrique.lepoint.fr/economie/arnauddubien-la-russie-s-interesse-egalement-a-la-nouvel-leafrique-page-2-25-10-2017-2167405_2258.php
8. Gille-Belova O., Tatiana Kastouéva-Jean. Les universités russes sont-elles compétitives?, Paris: CNRS Éditions, 2013. Revue detudes comparatives Est-Ouest, 2014. № 1. P. 229-231.
9. Groppo Armelle. L'enseignement supérieur en Russie aujourd'hui. La Revue russe, 2009. Vol. 33. № 1. P. 145-158.
10. Knight Jane et De Wit Hans. Internationalization of higher education: Past and future. International Higher Education, 2018. № 95. P. 2-4.
