University of Westminster delegation visits partner institution Westminster International University in Tashkent

During two days of graduations Vice-Chancellor Dr Peter Bonfield and Bakhrom Mirkasimov, Rector of WIUT, presided at four ceremonies which saw over 1,500 new graduates join the ranks of Westminster’s alumni. In addition, an Honorary Doctorate of Letters was awarded to Dr Komiljon Karimov, who was Rector of WIUT until September 2020.

Prior to the graduation ceremonies, a one-day conference entitled ‘Central Asia: 30 Years of Independence Challenges and Opportunities’ was held to formally launch the ‘Forum for Uzbek and Silk Road Studies’, a joint research initiative established between Westminster and WIUT. The conference was offered in hybrid mode with papers from Uzbekistan, the UK and internationally. During the Conference, it was highlighted that for twenty of the thirty years that the Republic of Uzbekistan has been an independent state, Westminster has been in partnership with WIUT. 

To mark the start of the 20th anniversary celebrations, the Vice-Chancellor and Rector planted an oak tree in the grounds of the WIUT campus as a symbol of the long-lasting nature of the partnership between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Uzbekistan. 

The partnership with WIUT is a unique example of a transnational education partnership in which over the past 20 years student numbers have grown from 120 to over 5000 students and over 5,000 WIUT alumni, with courses now offered at foundation, undergraduate and postgraduate level. The past two decades have also seen a huge strengthening of the partnership in new directions, with the development of initiatives such as collaborative research activity, including WIUT colleagues studying for PhDs at Westminster, and student and staff mobility.

Moving forwards, the University of Westminster looks forward to further strengthening the partnership through the establishment of fresh collaborative developments, including a joint student summer school centred on Sustainable Development Goals and collaborative Continuing Professional Development (CPD) training designed to support the needs of the Uzbek economy.

Talking about the partnership, Professor Alex Hughes, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Global Engagement and Employability, said: “It has been a pleasure and a privilege to work with WIUT colleagues to strengthen and deepen our strategic international partnership. Our common values and ambitions mean that the next twenty years of our relationship will be even richer and stronger than its first two decades.”

Bakhrom Mirkasimov, Rector at WIUT, added: “We were delighted to be able to host the Vice-Chancellor and his colleagues from the University of Westminster after such a long gap. Our partnership has gone from strength to strength over the past twenty years and we are grateful to continue our joint work together to further develop and strengthen our links. We look forward to celebrating our University's 20th birthday and the milestones achieved by the partnership in January 2022 with colleagues from the University of Westminster.”

Find out more about the University of Westminster’s Global Partner Network.