Rector Molari inaugurates in Baku the Joint Certificate Program in Food System Management, the first educational programme promoted by Italy-Azerbaijan University

A delegation from the University of Bologna led by Rector Giovanni Molari visited Baku, Azerbaijan, to officially kick-off the new Joint Certificate Program in Food System Management. The initiative is part of Italy-Azerbaijan University, the new Azerbaijani-Italian international university based in Baku, on the campus of ADA University.

Rector Molari emphasised the strategic importance of the collaboration between the University of Bologna and ADA University, which is driven by shared goals and synergic actions, and also invited the Rector of ADA University, Hafiz Pashayev, to Bologna.

Rector Pashayev pointed out that the kick-off of the new Joint Certificate Programme marks the beginning of the implementation phase of the Italy-Azerbaijan University after almost three years of joint preparation and planning.

Both Rectors then stated that this first joint programme is only the first step in a broader collaboration that will expand to include many other programmes and activities in the coming years.

During the visit to Baku, the University of Bologna delegation held a series of high-level meetings with the Italian Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Claudio Taffuri, Azerbaijan's Minister of Agriculture, Majnun Mammadov, and the Minister of Science and Education, Emin Amrullayev. The delegation also visited the site where the Italy-Azerbaijan University Campus is being built and some areas around Baku, to explore the region's development potential in the agri-food sector.

The Joint Certificate Programme in Food System Management was created to increase the know-how in the agri-food sector and involves actors and representatives of the entire agri-food system in Azerbaijan, including researchers, company managers and government representatives.

The programme promotes an interdisciplinary approach covering a wide range of subject areas, including food chain management, the development of a precise and sustainable agriculture, water resources management, agricultural production and horticultural systems, animal production, and food science and technology. It will be delivered in three modules: one organised in Baku, which has just been launched, one online, and one in Bologna, which will take place in July.