MOSCOW, Jul 26Advanced high-tech developments in the field of peaceful atom, offered by Russia, are necessary for the development of African countries — both in energy and agriculture, as well as healthcare, said the director of the School of Nuclear Technology Engineering, and. O. Vice-Rector for Technology Transfer and Educational Services of Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU) Oleg Dolmatov.
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"Today, nuclear technologies for power and non-power applications are in high demand in almost all countries of the African continent. For the development of any industry, countries also need a developed energy sector. Therefore, Africa's interest in the energy use of nuclear technologies and the construction of nuclear power plants is very high,» the expert said.
In addition, African countries are traditional exporters of agricultural products, Dolmatov recalled.
«And the export of agricultural products is a significant sector of the national economy for many countries. Therefore, the radiation processing of such products, which allows you to save vegetables and fruits sent for export, is important for producers from African countries,» the agency's interlocutor explained.
Another important area of Rosatom's cooperation with African partners is nuclear medicine, Dolmatov noted.
«According to research conducted by the International Union against Cancer, since 2000, mortality from cancer in the countries of the African region has increased by 45%. That is why the ability of nuclear medicine to diagnose various types of cancer using radiopharmaceuticals, and then carry out therapy is very relevant for Africa,» he added.
According to Dolmatov, methods and tools of radioecological monitoring are also in demand in Africa.
«In many African countries, there is an acute issue of disposal of industrial and domestic waste, which may contain isotopes that pose a threat to public health,» the expert said.
Human resource
«But the main thing that should not be forgotten is that the development of all the above technologies is simply impossible without human resources capable of developing and supporting these areas. Therefore, the possibility of training personnel in the field of nuclear physics and technology is of particular interest to all African countries. in Russian universities. The highest level of Russian nuclear education is recognized all over the world. I think no one will argue with this,» Dolmatov said.
Tomsk Polytechnic University, being one of the key universities of Rosatom, is actively involved in training personnel for the nuclear industry, including for foreign partners of the Russian nuclear state corporation.
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«It is symbolic that the first international nuclear master's program, opened at TPU in 2015, was aimed at students from the country of African content — Egypt. Now the geography of our graduates covers more than 20 countries of the world. A special place among them is occupied by students from African countries» Dolmatov noted.
At different times, students from Algeria, Egypt, the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Senegal, Sudan, South Africa, Nigeria and Côte d'Ivoire were trained at TPU.
According to Dolmatov, the competencies of TPU teachers and scientists, as well as the unique educational and scientific infrastructure (including Russia's only operating research university nuclear reactor) allow the university to train students from African countries across the entire spectrum of the above technologies: nuclear power, nuclear medicine, nuclear safety, radioecology.