Roscongress Foundation and UN Technology Bank Sign Cooperation Agreement

On the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum,  The Roscongress Foundation and the United Nations Technology Bank for the Least Developed Countries (UN Technology Bank) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish effective collaboration between the relevant organizations and business communities in the Russian Federation and the world’s 46 least developed countries (LDCs) as part of the implementation of the UN Technology Bank’s programmes. The document was signed by Roscongress Foundation CEO and Chairman of the Board Alexander Stuglev and United Nations Technology Bank Managing Director Joshua Phoho Setipa. SPIEF Director Alexei Valkov took part in the exchange of documents.

The UN Technology Bank is a subsidiary body of the United Nations General Assembly. As the focal point on science, technology and innovation for LDCs, the UN Technology Bank is dedicated to enhancing the contribution of science, technology and innovation for sustainable development in the world’s 46 least developed countries and promotes their integration into the global knowledge-based economy. 

“The UN Technology Bank is an important organization with activities aiming to help the world’s least developed nations develop their economies, improve people’s living standards, and achieve the sustainable development goals. Today, when even the world’s largest economies find themselves in a stressful situation, such international assistance is of particular importance,” Stuglev said.

The parties agreed to develop common communication platforms at the international level and cooperate in areas such as investment and finance, export-import activities as well as tourism and culture. The MoU also provides a framework for the cooperation to strengthen existing and to develop new and long-term partnerships.

“The Roscongress Foundation, as a socially oriented non-financial development institution, is an organizer of key international communication platforms. The Foundation’s activities make a significant contribution to promoting interstate cooperation in various sectors. Supporting the development agenda of least developed countries requires close cooperation between governments, businesses, and the broader scientific community. The inclusion of the UN Technology Bank’s agenda in the Foundation’s work will create relevant opportunities for multi-stakeholder dialogue, collaborations and partnerships in the STI area,” said Setipa.

“We highly value the results of our joint work at the summit. I am sure the achieved results are creating a good foundation for further deepening the Russia-Africa partnership in the interests of our nations’ prosperity and wellbeing.”

President of the Russian Federation
Vladimir Putin

The Russia–Africa Summit, which is taking place in Sochi on 23–24 October 2019, encapsulates the historically friendly relations between the African continent and the Russian Federation. This Summit carries great significance as it is the first of its kind to emerge during a period of major global and international transformations. In response to the aspirations of the people it is representing, the Summit intends to build a comprehensive framework for expanding Russian–African relations into broader horizons of joint cooperation across different fields.

The African nations and Russia share a common understanding of international relations, based on the principles of respect for the rule of international law, equality, non-interference in the internal affairs of states, and the peaceful resolution of disputes. Both sides affirm their commitment to support multilateral actions to oppose new international threats, be they terrorism and extremism in all their forms, or declining growth rates. The two sides share a firm conviction regarding the importance of developing trade flows and supporting mutual investment in such a way as to ensure security, peace and development for the African and Russian people.

African countries have huge potential and opportunities that will allow them, once efforts to streamline their economies have been achieved, to emerge as real global players. In recent years, the nations of this continent have achieved major successes spanning the political, economic, social and administrative spheres. Africa has flourished in terms of growth over the past decade, reaching a continent-wide growth rate of 3.55% in 2018.

The African Union Summit, which was held in Niger in July 2019, continued the efforts of the African countries and saw the African Continental Free Trade Agreement come into force, along with its operational instruments. The agreement is one of the key objectives of Agenda 2063, an African development strategy that has been created to address the African people’s desire for prosperity and decent living standards.

These successes are opening up wide-ranging prospects for cooperation between African countries and the Russian Federation, and confirm the determination of African governments and their people to cooperate with multiple partners in order to establish mutually beneficial relations.

With this in mind, we express our hopes that the Russia–Africa Summit will help in the establishment of constructive strategic relations, based on partnership between two sides across various fields, and in the service of fulfilling the hopes and aspirations of the African people and their friends in Russia.

President of the Arab Republic of Egypt
Abdelfattah ALSISI