The delegation of the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences took part in the XIII All-Russian Congress of Councils of Young Scientists and Student Scientific Societies

From 2 to 4 July 2025, the XIII All-Russian Congress of Councils of Young Scientists and Student Scientific Societies was held in the city of Ufa. The event was attended by the delegation of the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, which included:

Andrey Konstantinovich Barinov, PhD in Economic Sciences, Research Associate of the Centre for Global and Strategic Studies, Chairman of the Council of Young Scientists of IAS RAS;

Vasily Sidorov, PhD in Economic Sciences, Senior Researcher at the Centre for African Strategy in BRICS, Coordinator of the Council of Young Scientists, IAS RAS.

The Institute's staff took part in the sections ‘Youth Laboratories: from Project to Implementation’ and ‘Opportunities for BRICS Young Scientists’. As part of their presentations, they presented the experience of establishing the Centre for African Strategy in BRICS, a youth laboratory based at the Institute of African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and described its current and planned activities.

Of particular note was the section ‘Opportunities for BRICS Young Scientists’ organised in partnership with the Analytical Centre for International Science, Technology and Education Programmes (ISTEP). After presentations by Anastasia Zadorina, Deputy Executive Director for International Scientific and Technological Cooperation of the ISTEP, and Vasily Sidorov, the participants had the opportunity to express their ideas in an open-microphone format. This part of the discussion elicited a particularly lively response and demonstrated the high interest of the Congress members in joint initiatives with BRICS partners, as well as in the activities of the Centre for African Strategy in BRICS at the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

At the conclusion of the Congress, Elena Mikhailovna Ivannikova, Head of the Department of the Russian President's Office for Science and Education Policy, emphasized the need to strengthen the BRICS theme within the framework of the Decade of Science and Technology in Russia. According to her, this year's Congress of Young Scientists will feature a separate socio-humanitarian block, organized with a view to developing scientific ties within the framework of the association.

"Behind BRICS is a real vector of future global development. Under these conditions, young scientists should become one of the strong pillars for building interstate cooperation. We must coordinate our efforts, work together, launch joint projects and share knowledge to form the intellectual foundation of a new multipolar world. Science is our strategic responsibility, and we are ready to bear it," emphasised Andrey Konstantinovich Barinov.