Peter Pellegrini, president of the Slovak Republic, was accompanied on his official visit to Italy by Tomáš Drucker, Minister of Education, Denisa Saková, Minister of Economy and representatives of major Slovak universities and private companies. The aim of the Slovak delegation visit was to strengthen mutual cooperation in the economic and educational spheres. On 14 January 2025 in Rome, the Slovak academics, together with Róbert Zsembera the State Secretary for Universities and Academic Research, took part in expert meetings with representatives of the best Italian universities (Università degli Studi di Roma LA SAPIENZA, LUISS Guido Carli, Università degli Studi di Roma “Tor Vergata”, Università degli Studi Roma 3, Postgraduate School of Economics and International Relations – Catholic University of Sacro Cuore – Rome Campus) and the National Research Council with the aim of discussing academic cooperation and innovation. On behalf of UPJŠ the working meetings were attended by the Rector, prof. MUDr. Daniel Pella, PhD. and Vice-Rector for International Relations Dr. h. c. prof. Mgr. Slávka Tomaščíková, PhD.
After the opening of the round table, Slovak delegation of representatives of seven universities (Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, University of Žilina, Comenius University in Bratislava, Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica, University of Economics in Bratislava, University of Constantine the Philosopher in Nitra, Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra, Trnava University in Trnava) and the Slovak Academy of Sciences, which included an address by State Secretary Zsembera and presentations by the participating Slovak and Italian universities, they then visited the Slovak Historical Institute in Rome, where Mgr. Daniel Černý, PhD., its director, presented the activities of the Institute, scholarships and other opportunities for our researchers and students in the form of scientific cooperation and networking in the field of the history of national revivals and modern history.
“The aim of the expert meetings was to establish contacts and explore the possibilities for inter-university and inter-institutional academic cooperation in education and science at several levels. The possibilities for cooperation officially declared through memoranda and cooperation agreements were discussed. The exchange of experience in education, science and research with partner institutions from other countries is always mutually enriching on the path to innovation and modernization of education,” explained prof. Pella, the Rector of UPJŠ.
“All the selected Italian universities and institutions belong to the top of higher education and research in Italy and offer a wide range of opportunities for international cooperation. The possible establishment of new forms of cooperation and the expansion of existing ones could further strengthen the active academic and scientific exchange between Italian institutions and UPJŠ,” said the Vice-Rector for International Relations prof. Tomaščíková. The working programme was concluded with a visit to the Luiss Enlabs start-up center, which is one of the leading European accelerators established by the private university LUISS in cooperation with the LVenture Group. This centre is an example of effective cooperation between academia and the labour market and innovation, especially in the humanities and social sciences.
