The Minister of Education, Daniel David, on a visit to the United States, held meetings with representatives of several organizations and institutions, including the International Monetary Fund, the Congressional Office for International Leadership (COIL), the Atlantic Council, as well as with representatives of the Romanian diaspora.

According to the ministry’s Facebook page, during the meeting with representatives of the Congressional Office for International Leadership, an agency of the US Congress, the discussions focused on the potential impact of the current paradigmatic changes in the international order on education and research-innovation and on how Romania can learn from the American resilience and leadership in the face of these changes.

The Education minister said, according to the cited source, that only the US-EU partnership is the „winning card” under these major changes, and Euro-Atlantic Romania is an active supporter of this commitment.

Minister David also outlined the ministry’s vision of how education should promote culture and science in society as an antidote to pseudo-science.

„In order to facilitate COIL’s activities in Romania, we agreed to have a contact person for COIL within the Ministry of Education and Research. The COIL team was led by Jane Sargus, executive director, and included Matt Tucker, senior program manager,” explained the minister.

At the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Daniel David discussed with Executive Director Jeroen Clicq, who is also in charge of Romania, the discussion focusing on the IMF’s educational internship program and how Romania can have a stronger presence, including through the involvement of the Ministry of Education and Research.

At the same time, Daniel David presented the impact of the country’s economic-financial situation on education and research-innovation, mentioning the assumption of the field as a national priority by the ruling coalition, including the slight increase in the budget compared to last year.

„I pointed out that, in general, these areas need to be protected when cautious/austerity measures are proposed by the IMF, because these fields give rise to the competitiveness which can then contribute to economic and financial recovery and development,” the minister of Education and Research added.

During the meeting with representatives of the Atlantic Council – one of the most powerful US think-tanks promoting Atlantic cooperation – minister David spoke with the Director for Europe, Jorn Fleck, and Ambassador Daniel Fried.

„The discussion focused on international paradigm shifts impacting on education (e.g. academic mobility) and research-innovation. I pointed out that, in the context of these changes, the European Union (and therefore also Euro-Atlantic Romania) and the USA must strengthen their Atlantic partnership in order to be winners in these international realignments, and education and research-innovation can be such connecting platforms,” David added.

The minister also met representatives of the Romanian diaspora and visited an American school where children of Romanians from Washington DC study.

AGERPRES