On 17 October, the "General Agreement on Academic and Cultural Cooperation" was signed in Astana, Kazakhstan's capital, between the VUB's Brussels Diplomatic Academy (BDA) and the Academy of Public Administration (APA). On behalf of the BDA, Honorary Consul Jean De Brabander signed under the auspices of H.E. Jeroen Cooreman, Director-General for Bilateral Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and H.E. Henri Vantieghem, Belgian Ambassador in Astana. On the Kazakh side, the agreement was signed by Vice-rector Baurzhan Bokayev.

Both sides look forward to a mutually fruitful cooperation to promote bilateral relations between Belgium and Kazakhstan. A very strong emphasis was placed on combining academic education and training, with gaining economic expertise through internships and traineeships with companies. With Kazakhstan as an economic superpower and stronghold in Central Asia, the BDA has established a strong partnership. On the other hand, there is growing interest in, and rapprochement with, Europe in the world's eighth-largest country, in which Brussels and the BDA can obviously play an important role.

  • More information on the Brussels Diplomatic Academy (BDA) via their website
  • More information on Kazakhstan's Academy of Public Administration (APA) via their website