• The agreement states that students will exchange for a semester or a year each year.

• It also includes joint research focused on tropical-ecosystem preservation, climate-change mitigation, and sustainable bioresource management.

• The move supports UL’s 2030 modernization vision and taps BFU’s leading forestry tech to expand academic networks and innovation capacity

The University of Lomé (UL) and Beijing Forestry University (BFU) have signed a partnership agreement to boost cooperation in education, research, and innovation. UL’s First Vice-President Komlan Batawila and BFU’s Vice-President Guohui Zou signed the memorandum of understanding in Lomé last week. The deal focuses on sustainable development, academic mobility, and shared scientific goals.

The agreement allows each university to send two students per year for one semester or a full academic year abroad. Fields of study include ecology, forestry, and geospatial technologies. Beyond student mobility, both institutions will collaborate on research projects targeting the preservation of tropical ecosystems, climate change mitigation, and sustainable bioresource management.

The partnership also covers faculty exchanges, joint scientific seminars, and sharing of teaching materials. “These exchanges will give students access to cutting-edge technologies, such as those developed by BFU in the field of sustainable forest management,” said Joseph Koffi Tsigbé, Director of Cooperation at UL. “Our researchers will benefit from new areas of study and broader academic networks.”

The agreement aligns with the University of Lomé’s 2030 vision, which aims to modernize education, promote innovation, and expand international partnerships. Founded in 1952, Beijing Forestry University is one of China’s top universities in forestry and environmental sciences.

This article was initially published in French by Esaïe Edoh
Edited in English by Ange Jason Quenum