Commission extends scholar mobility to Central Asia and Middle East
The European Commission has opened its scholarship scheme to countries outside of the EU to facilitate the mobility of students, researchers and academic countries. The 'Erasmus Mundus External Cooperation Window' will be open to the 16 countries party to the EU's Neighbourhood Policy (Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Egypt, Georgia, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Moldova, Morocco, Syria, Tunisia, Ukraine and the West Bank and Gaza Strip), as well as Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Iraq and Yemen. The first call for proposals will be published before the end of 2006 and will allow for 1,300 scholarships, of which 110 will be dedicated to Iran, Iraq and Yemen. EU Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighbourhood Policy, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, emphasised the role that such a scheme could have in furthering cooperation on many levels. 'Scholarships like these contribute to the development of partner countries and are an excellent way of fostering deeper understanding between our people. 'Against the backdrop of Iran's strained relations with the international community, it remains as important as ever for the EU to continue encouraging and supporting academic exchanges with that country,' she added. The new initiative builds on the EU Erasmus Mundus programme, which provides grants for third-country students and scholars to obtain a masters degree in Europe. It also supports cooperation between European and non-European universities and encourages EU students and scholars to spend time at third country universities.