Round Table on "Innovative education for a sustainable and competitive Moldovan agri-business e-AgriMBA" - October 18, 2024 0 Technical University of Moldova

Round Table on "Innovative education for a sustainable and competitive Moldovan agri-business e-AgriMBA" - October 18, 2024 0 Technical University of Moldova

On October 18, 2024, the Round Table on "Innovative education for a sustainable and competitive Moldovan agri-business e-AgriMBA" organized within the Electronic Pan-European Learning System for Sustainable Agribusiness MBA Education (e-AgriMBA) project took place at UTM.

The event focused its discussions on the benefits created by the MBA Management program in Agribusiness in the Republic of Moldova. The vital role of skills and knowledge in creating a competitive agricultural sector was highlighted, especially in the context of the European Union (pre)accession process. Topics of interest include the importance of education in English and lifelong learning within the MBA program, which bring long-term benefits to the business and academic environment.

Another important point is the integration of UTM into the international AgriMBA Network under the Association of European Universities of Life Sciences (ICA). It will facilitate the exchange of knowledge and experiences, thus contributing to the development of a modern agribusiness sector geared towards the requirements of the European market.

The Round Table was attended by international partners from Poland, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Hungary and Croatia, together with representatives from various institutions in the Republic of Moldova: Liliana Martin, Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry; Domnina Calancea and Tudor Morari – Agency for the Development and Modernization of Agriculture (ADMA); Iurie Uşelu – UCIP-IFAD; Ana Tibuleac and Stela Stratin – OPTIM Project; Svetlana Petrașcu – Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Moldova (CCIRM); Cristina Filip – AIPA; Rafael Ciloci – dean of FIEB; Rina Turcan – head of department, FIEB.

The event was opened by Mrs. Daniela Pojar, Vice-Rector for Financial Affairs and International Relations at the Technical University of Moldova (UTM), who mentioned about the beneficial aspects and international collaboration of the AgriMBA program.

Mrs. Aurelia Litvin, national coordinator of the e-AgriMBA project, mentioned that the initiation of this ambitious project initially generated many challenges. In solving them, along with the UTM team, there were remarkable personalities, including the ADMA team in the person of Mr. Popov Maxim and Mr. Codreanu Vadim, thanks to whom the opening of the program was possible.

At the same time, Mrs. Aurelia Litvin highlighted that, "The partners of the OPTIM project have shown a special interest in this MBA program and, thanks to them, it was possible to successfully achieve the objectives of the MBA Management program in agribusiness and, thus, we thank them."

Mr. Łukasz Wojdyga – Director of the Center for Strategic Studies, Institute of Enterprises in Warsaw, Poland highlighted that "The European Union really wants the UTM AgriMBA program to have an impact and create real added value for Moldovan agribusiness." Prof. Agata Malak-Rawlikowska – chair of AgriMBA Network and Head of the AgriMBA Program in Poland said "This is also the ambition of our e-AgriMBA project: we really want to have an impact." Prof. Rico Ihle – Secretary General of the AgriMBA network, from the Netherlands, presented the achievements and future directions of the project, and Prof. Wim Heijman – Former Secretary General of the network, from the Czech Republic, gave a retrospective on the development of AgriMBA and its impact on European agriculture.

Mr. KORDIK Hans – Team Leader, German-Moldovan Agricultural Policy Dialogue (APD) said: "This event underlined the crucial role of modern education and international collaboration to bring innovations to the agribusiness sector in the Republic of Moldova, facilitating its progress towards a sustainable and competitive future in the European context."

The MBA Program in Management in Agribusiness, within the Technical University of Moldova, has formal support from the Ministry of Agriculture of Moldova.