Oxford-Tunisia research partnership gets a major boost
from the agreement signing ceremony
Last week, a major step was taken to consolidate and move to unprecedented levels academic connections between the University of Oxford and Tunisian universities. The agreement, which was signed on the 4th of March in the Ministry of Higher Education in Tunis was made possible by a donation by Tunisian business man and philanthropist, Mr Hazem Ben Gacem, which aims at funding mobility between Oxford and Tunisia for research in the Humanities and Social Sciences. The Oxford home of the programme will be St Antony’s College, which was represented by Professor Eugene Rogan, Director of the Middle East Centre and a leading person in the initiative. Up to 6 doctoral students and academics will visit Oxford every year for one term each in order to conduct research and establish exchanges. A number of Oxford academics and postgraduate students will also have funded opportunities to do research in Tunisia. In addition, there will be funding for joint workshops and conferences as well as Arabic language study. The first cohort is due to start in the fall of 2024.
I have been part of this process from the start, capitalizing on my ongoing work in this direction, including through the Tunisia-UK Joint Commission for Higher Education since 2018; an important visit by top Tunisian academics and official to St John’s College last year; an exploration visit to seven Tunisian universities in May 2023 with Professors Eugene Rogan and Michael Willis and establishing Bourguiba Institute as an optional venue for Oxford Arabic undergraduates.
The event has attracted major media coverage in Tunisia, a sample of which can be found in the links below.