India and Germany form bilateral partnership to facilitate two-way exchange of students and researchersbila

India and Germany will soon sign a migration and mobility agreement, facilitating the two-way movement of students, professionals and researchers, and also addressing the challenges of illegal migration. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz welcomed the finalization of the negotiations on the bilateral agreement and agreed to take swift action.

“They agreed to take action to swiftly sign the agreement and bring it into force. They highlighted the importance of this agreement in facilitating two-way mobility of students, professionals and researchers as well as addressing the challenges of illegal migration,” said a joint statement issued after the sixth Inter-Governmental Consultations.

According to the statement, India will encourage the exchange of students and facilitate admission of German students in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) under programmes like Study in India.

The two governments also welcomed active people-to-people exchanges including among students, academia and the professional workforce and agreed to support each other’s efforts to expand the internationalisation of their higher education systems, to interlink further the innovation and research landscapes of both countries, and to strengthen dual structures for Vocational Education and Training.

Both Governments also welcomed efforts at university level to explore collaboration between Indian and German universities in the form of joint degrees and dual degrees. The ministers also expressed their intent to strengthen the cooperation in the field of medical products regulation by signing a Joint Declaration of Intent between the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) and Germany’s Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices and the Paul-Ehrlich-Institut (PEI).

Earlier, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and German Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development Svenja Schulze signed a joint declaration of intent on the implementation of Triangular Development Cooperation projects in Third Countries.