AUB Delegation to Ivory Coast Opens New Channels of Collaboration

Press release

Published October 26th, 2017 - 11:14 GMT

This first visit to Ivory Coast gave the delegation a chance to interact with the AUB alumni chapter in the country.

With the aim of strengthening ties with the AUB community worldwide, a delegation from the American University of Beirut (AUB) headed by its President Dr. Fadlo R. Khuri—accompanied by Vice President for Advancement Dr. Imad Baalbaki, Associate Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations Salma Dannawi Oueida, and Director of Admissions Dr. Salim Kanaan—visited Ivory Coast from October 18–20, 2017.

This first visit to Ivory Coast gave the delegation a chance to interact with the vibrant AUB alumni chapter in the country, in addition to opening new channels of collaboration between AUB and Ivory Coast. The president, vice president, and associate vice president met with a large number of successful alumni and visited factories. A dinner was held by prominent alumnus Adham El Khalil (BS ‘85) in honor of the delegation.

The delegation met with Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Ramata Bakayoko, and Minister of Health and Public Hygiene Raymonde Goudou Coffie. During the meetings, they discussed bilateral cooperation between AUB and the ministries.

President Khuri announced that two full scholarships are to be awarded to Ivorian students joining AUB, which was very well received by Minister Bakayoko who will help identify bright students to apply for the scholarship. Both parties enthusiastically welcomed the proposition of exchanging faculty and educational resources between the countries, in addition to healthcare expertise and research collaboration.

Dr. Kanaan visited five schools in Ivory Coast, where he offered presentations introducing AUB, its academic programs, and opportunities it offers to its students. Kanaan also held one-on-one orientation sessions with interested students and their parents.

A gala dinner was organized and attended by more than 100 alumni and members of the Lebanese community. During the gala, President Khuri thanked the community for the warm welcome and congratulated them on the outstanding job they are doing. In his turn, Chapter President Khalil Khraibani (BBA ‘09) welcomed the AUB delegation and promised to help further the collaborations between AUB and Ivory Coast.

The AUB delegation also presented honorary plaques to prominent alumni: Mr. Fouad Omeis (BBA ‘60) and Mrs. Hilda Attieh (BS ‘60) were awarded for their efforts towards the alumni chapter in Ivory Coast and their various contributions to AUB.

Background Information

American University of Beirut

Founded in 1866, the American University of Beirut is a teaching-centered research university based on the American liberal arts model of higher education. AUB has over 9,000 students and over 1,200 instructional faculty members. The University encourages freedom of thought and expression and seeks to graduate men and women committed to creative and critical thinking, lifelong learning, personal integrity, civic responsibility, and leadership.