Historical continuity and the current state of relations
Elena: Good afternoon! The Center for Monitoring and Evaluation of Modern Problems «United World» is with you and your permanent presenter Elena. We are at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Today, the esteemed Maxim Nikolaevich Zalyvsky, a representative of the Center for African Studies at the National Research University Higher School of Economics, and a specialist in the development of partner projects, is sitting opposite me. Maxim Nikolaevich and I want to discuss the prospects of Russian-African youth cooperation, digitalization, and talk about new opportunities for interaction between young people in Russia and African countries. Maxim Nikolaevich, how do you assess the current level of youth interaction between our country and the countries of the African continent?
Maxim Zalyvsky: Yes, this is an interesting question, and in fact it is very voluminous. To evaluate it, a small retrospective digression is needed. Since Soviet times, in the 1960s, we began to work closely with African countries that had previously fought against colonialism - we largely supported them in those years. Naturally, cooperation has developed not only at the political level, but also at the level of youth, students, and the academic community. And, of course, we are now witnessing the second wave of our rapprochement, strengthening scientific, educational and economic ties. We see the trade turnover growing. Over the past year and a half, 16 African heads of state have visited Moscow, which clearly demonstrates their interest in our country. If we talk about young people, then, of course, they are mostly students. It is probably not worth talking about cooperation at the school level in a broad sense yet. At the level of the student and research communities, this interaction is now actively developing, largely due to the support of initiatives from the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Education, private organizations, I am sure, including the United World organization, as well as other public and private initiatives. And that's fine. I often repeat that in order to strengthen political and economic ties, it is most effective to cooperate at the level of culture, education and humanitarian projects.
The attractiveness of Russian education and the potential of regional universities
Elena: I agree, cooperation at the level of youth and youth movements is our advantage. And if we talk about the youth themselves: how high is the interest of African students in Russia in the field of education and technology?
Maxim Zalyvsky: That's a great question! I can confidently say that the interest is extremely high. There are 54 countries in Africa, and most of them need not only highly qualified specialists, but also personnel at the level of secondary vocational education.
If we talk about high-level specialists, then in such North African countries as, for example, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, the middle class is now actively forming. Accordingly, the infrastructure is also developing, which requires engineers and medical professionals, as well as artificial intelligence specialists. In addition to the interest in Russian education, and our country is really known for the high quality of education in the fields of physics, mathematics, engineering, astronautics and medicine, there is one very interesting fact: in Morocco or Egypt, higher education is often more expensive than in Russia. Therefore, many applicants from these countries prefer to study with us – it is not only high-quality, but also more affordable. For many, this is an amazing discovery.
Elena: The Republic of Mordovia as a great example: we have many young people from African countries studying here.
Maxim Zalyvsky: And I would just like to point out that for regional universities of the Russian Federation there is an excellent potential for growth and attraction of international students. We know that studying at Moscow universities is sometimes two to three times more expensive than in the regions. And for universities in cities such as Izhevsk, Samara, Saransk and other regional centers, this is a great opportunity for development. Of course, this requires improving the infrastructure of educational institutions and cities themselves. Currently, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation is actively implementing a program to create world–class campuses with substantial government support - modern dormitories, academic buildings, and clinics are being built. Of course, there are certain difficulties that foreign students often tell me about.
Key barriers to youth cooperation
Elena: You just mentioned the topic of problems. I would like to know what barriers prevent full-fledged youth cooperation between the Russian Federation and Africa?
Maxim Zalyvsky: Yes, there are certain problems, I often talk with international students. Let's start by learning Russian as a foreign language. Yes, now there is an opportunity to study Russian as a foreign language in an online format, and sometimes students come with basic skills - with the so–called spoken language, which allows them to adapt at first. Our universities have preparatory faculties, but today we strive to prepare African students for their first year even better. If we are talking about complex technical, engineering or medical disciplines, then the level of language proficiency is critically important for the successful development of the program. Of course, there are programs in English and French, but we still prefer to teach students in Russian. After all, language is the code of our culture. The student gets to know Russia and its traditions, and returning to his homeland, passes on this knowledge and his warm impressions to colleagues and peers. We have quite complex requirements for foreigners, visa issues, and requirements for foreign citizens to stay in Russia. On the one hand, we would like to simplify these procedures. On the other hand, we live in the modern world, in conditions of regional conflicts, and the competent authorities are well aware of this. Security requirements that sometimes seem excessive are justified, because safety always comes first. Nevertheless, procedures are gradually being optimized, processes are being digitized, and hopefully they will become even more convenient in the future. As for the other barriers: communicating with students from Africa, I see that they are very happy with life in Russia. Even in such distinctive regions as the North Caucasus (for example, in the Chechen Republic) or Siberia, they are greeted with sincere cordiality. They are provided with comfortable living conditions, involved in student life and leisure activities. This is wonderful, because this is how we create a warm, friendly and positive image of our country.
Prospects and demographic potential of cooperation
Elena: Despite the existing difficulties, the dynamics of Russian-African relations in the youth sphere shows that in 10-15 years our cooperation will become even closer and more positive. Do you agree?
Maxim Zalyvsky: I think that's how it's going to be, because we just don't have any other choice. Africa is a dynamically developing, young continent, from where more than half of the population there is under the age of 23, which is now most actively sending students to study in Russia. Five years ago, about 15-20 thousand African students studied in our country, but today this figure has grown to almost 40 thousand. We have a lot to grow, and this area has enormous potential. Africa is in dire need of qualified personnel. And Russia is ready to help: we openly declare this both at the interstate level and within the framework of various bilateral events. We are ready to share not only educational methods, but also our technologies. In this vein, Russia is always happy to welcome African students and opens its doors to them.
Elena: I totally agree with you. Maxim Nikolaevich, thank you very much for your time and informative conversation! The team of the United World NGO and Maxim Nikolaevich Zalyvsky from the Center for African Studies at the National Research University Higher School of Economics were with you. See you soon!
*"United World" would like to thank Maxim Nikolaevich Zalyvsky for meeting at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2026 and for a meaningful conversation about Russian-African cooperation*
