The Partnership Between ITU and Djibouti Becomes More Systematic

Djibouti’s Minister of Higher Education and Research Dr. Nabil Mohamed Ahmed, President of the University of Djibouti Dr. Djama Mohamed Hassan, and their accompanying delegation paid a visit to our university. The meetings held were significant for advancing and strengthening the scientific and academic cooperation between ITU and Djibouti.

The visit of the Djiboutian delegation aimed to make the long-established and steadily growing academic partnership between Istanbul Technical University (ITU) and Djibouti more systematic.

On June 16, 2025, ITU Rector Prof. Dr. Hasan Mandal, Vice Rectors Prof. Dr. İpek Akın Karadayı and Prof. Dr. Şenol Ataoğlu, along with faculty members, hosted Djibouti’s Minister of Higher Education and Research Dr. Nabil Mohamed Ahmed, President of the University of Djibouti Dr. Djama Mohamed Hassan, and their delegation at the Ayazağa Campus.

ITU Rector Prof. Dr. Hasan Mandal pointed to the most concrete indicator of the academic cooperation with Djibouti: Djiboutian students who studied at ITU and later took on academic roles in their home country. Our Rector emphasized that significant steps are being taken to structure this shared success story between ITU and Djibouti into a more systematic framework.

The sense of ownership, excitement, and culture of production demonstrated in the projects of ITU students provided the Djiboutian delegation with an inspiring perspective during their visit to our project teams at the end of the meeting.

Prof. Dr. Mandal emphasized that the collaborations between ITU and Djibouti not only contribute to academic ties but also help foster cultural bonds between the two countries. He highlighted ITU’s vision and national engineering strength as a potential contributor to establishing project teams in Djibouti and supporting their participation in platforms like TEKNOFEST in 2026 with their own projects.

In the upcoming period, the partnership between ITU and the University of Djibouti aims to expand student exchange programs, increase joint research projects, and develop stronger collaborations in academic publications. For both universities, while existing course equivalency projects are being completed, it is essential to establish new collaborations in strategic fields such as computer engineering and maritime studies.

A dynamic platform approach is being established to enhance researcher and student mobility by combining the expertise of both parties more efficiently. Through new projects, the goal is to unlock even greater potential.

Previously, our Rector Prof. Dr. Hasan Mandal visited Djibouti between February 23–25, 2025, during the International Conference on Energy and Applications (ICEA 2025). As part of this visit, Prof. Dr. Mandal toured the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Djibouti’s Balbala Campus and met with the Djiboutian alumni of ITU.