Ashoka Reflections_JULY 2023
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Ashoka University has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Université Côte d’Azur, France
to foster education and research collaboration in the field of health sciences. The MoU is under the
framework of the ‘Franco-Indian Campus on Health for the Indo-Pacific Region’, a joint initiative by the
French Ministry of European & Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Higher Education, Research & Innovation.
The initiative seeks to bring the French and Indian higher education institutes together, to work on various
basic and applied areas of health sciences. In this funded endeavour, Ashoka University has joined hands
with the University of Cote d’ Azur from France, along with the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru (IISc)
and Indraprastha Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIIT-D) as part of the consortium from the Indian side.
The consortium of these four higher education research institutes will focus on health topics ranging from
understanding and treatment development for diseases like cancer, respiratory diseases, aging as well as
public health concerns of antimicrobial resistance.
Under this pilot-funded programme, the universities will engage in joint research and innovation projects;
develop a foundation for building joint/dual degree programmes; facilitate the exchange of faculty and
research scholars; and create channels to exchange knowledge and expertise.
A key focus area would be to focus on the intersection of health and computer sciences, as well as nurturing
innovation through entrepreneurship.
Speaking about the need for such collaborations, Somak Raychaudhury, Vice-Chancellor, Ashoka University
stated, “This partnership with Université Côte d’Azur seeks to create such a platform that would address
health problems of today through a multidisciplinary lens, as well as aims to nurture future leaders for
challenges of tomorrow. Ashoka will work with Université Côte d’Azur to make it a long-term program in a
sustainable way”.
“We are excited to be part of this consortium as it provides our faculty and research scholars with
opportunities to work with their global counterparts on pressing health-related issues. Additionally, it
creates a pathway for creating joint/dual advanced degree programmes benefiting students through the
combined strength of two partnering institutions. This partnership is a reflection of Ashoka’s rapidly
growing base in research-integrated education internationally”, said one of the academic coordinators of
the programme, Kasturi Mitra, Associate Professor of Biology and DBT-WellcomeTrust India Alliance Senior
Fellow, Trivedi School of Biosciences, Ashoka University.
"We are delighted to work with Ashoka University as one of our partners, a fast-growing higher education
institution, which addresses today's and tomorrow's challenges with a very agile and modular model of
research and education”, said one of the academic coordinators of the programme, Laurent Counillon,
Professor and Director, LIFE-Graduate School of Life and Health Sciences, Université Côte d’Azur.
Ashoka Reflections | Page 02
The MoU is under the framework of a joint initiative by the
French Ministry of European & Foreign Affairs and
Ministry of Higher Education, Research & Innovation
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